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Suspected gunman aged 89 held in Greece after five wounded

Five people were left with non-life-threatening injuries, according to Greece's state broadcaster ERT.

Published April 28, 2026, 2:30 PM
Updated May 10, 2026, 9:47 PM1.5K
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Suspected gunman aged 89 held in Greece after five wounded

Nikos Papanikolaou,

Zahra Fatimaand

Gabriela Pomeroy

Reuters Three police officers walk outside a courthouse in following a shooting incident that left several wounded. The men wear dark navy uniforms, bullet proof vests and sunglasses.Reuters

Police in Greece have arrested an 89-year-old man following a double shooting which left five people injured.

The attacker initially opened fire at a social security agency in the Kerameikos area of Athens on Tuesday, wounding an employee in the leg, police say.

He then travelled to a courthouse around 5km (3.1 miles) away in Ambelokipi, where a further four people were reportedly injured, before fleeing the scene and leaving behind a shotgun, authorities add.

There is a heavy police presence at both locations and the motive for the shooting is not yet clear.

The man was arrested in the city of Patra, some 200km from the capital.

Police found him at a hotel near the bus station in the port city, public television channel ERT reported.

He was found in possession of a second weapon, a loaded .38 calibre revolver, according to local media.

According to local media reports, the attacker had entered the buildings with a shotgun concealed under his coat.

State broadcaster ERT showed surveillance footage of the suspect calmly leaving the building on foot - with police investigating the possibility he had caught a taxi to the second location.

"I saw the whole thing... he was firing at the ground," one eyewitness told state news agency ANA.

"Four women working at the small claims court were slightly injured," the head of the judiciary employees' union in Athens, Stratis Dounias, told the broadcaster.

ERT reported the five people - a man and four women - were left with non-life-threatening injuries in the shootings.

Gun violence in Greece is relatively uncommon, as firearm ownership is allowed but heavily regulated.

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