The motive of the gunman is not clear.
Published on 28 April 2026
Greek police have arrested an 89-year-old man in connection with a double shooting in Athens that left five people injured.
The suspect was detained in the city of Patra, 200 kilometers (124 miles) west of the capital, following a major operation on Tuesday. The suspect reportedly opened fire inside a social security agency in the Keramikos district in the center of Athens.
The attacker reportedly told an employee of the state pension organization EFKA to “get over” before shooting him. In the leg.
Alexandros Varveris, head of the National Social Security Fund, told ERT radio that the gunman was wearing a trench coat under which he had hidden a gun.
The pensioner then traveled by taxi to the nearby court in Ambelokpi, where four people were injured.
Stratis Donias, head of the Athens judicial staff union, said preliminary information indicated the man had fired on the floor inside an office in the court building.
The motive for the shooting has not yet been established, but the suspect reportedly threw envelopes filled with documents on the court floor after the shooting, and claimed that they explained the reasons for his actions.
After this the attacker left a gun and ran away from the spot. He was later arrested at a hotel, during which a second weapon was found, local media reported.
Media identified the suspect as a garbage collector from the Athens area. He had psychological problems, and was treated in a mental hospital in 2018, the AFP news agency reported
Gun violence is rare in Greece, with firearm ownership permitted but strictly regulated.
Athens court workers announced a 24-hour strike on Wednesday in protest of the incident, which they blamed on poor security in court buildings.
