Police in Athens searched for an 89-year-old suspect after shootings at a social security office and a courthouse left at least four people wounded. CCTV footage reportedly shows the man carrying a short-barreled shotgun, which authorities later recovered. Several court employees suffered minor pellet wounds from ricochet; one social security worker was hit in the leg and taken to hospital. Investigators say the motive is unclear, though envelopes of documents found at the courthouse may be relevant.
89-Year-Old Suspect Sought After Shootings At Athens Social Security Office And Courthouse; Several Wounded
People leave a courthouse after a gunman opened fire leaving several people wounded in Athens, Tuesday, April 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)(ASSOCIATED PRESS)
Police in Athens on Tuesday searched for an 89-year-old man suspected of opening fire at two central-city locations — a social security office and a courthouse — injuring at least four people, authorities said.
People gather outside a courthouse after a gunman opened fire leaving several people wounded in Athens, Tuesday, April 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)(ASSOCIATED PRESS)
According to police, the suspect was armed with a short-barreled shotgun and first fired inside a social security office in the Kerameikos neighborhood, striking an employee in the leg. Responding officers applied a tourniquet and the wounded man was taken to hospital; the shooter fled before being detained.
A policeman speaks with a woman outside a courthouse after a gunman opened fire leaving several people wounded in Athens, Tuesday, April 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)(ASSOCIATED PRESS)
Local broadcasters released security-camera footage that they said showed a man calmly crossing the street carrying what appears to be a shotgun. Police later said the same individual is suspected of firing on the ground floor of a courthouse elsewhere in central Athens; the weapon was recovered by authorities.
People gather outside a courthouse after a gunman opened leaving several people wounded in Athens, Tuesday, April 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)(ASSOCIATED PRESS)
Television footage showed ambulance crews transporting at least three people from the courthouse. Stratis Dounias, head of the Athens Judicial Employees Union, said early information indicated the shooter fired at the floor of an office. Several staff were slightly wounded by ricocheting shotgun pellets, and media reports said a fourth employee was taken to hospital without visible physical injuries.
"He went in, went up to the fourth floor, raised his shotgun, told an employee to duck and hit another one," Alexandros Varveris, head of the National Social Security Fund (EFKA), told ERT radio. Varveris said the attacker appeared to have concealed the shotgun under a trenchcoat and did not seem to target a specific individual.
State broadcaster ERT reported that the suspect left envelopes containing documents at the courthouse after the shooting, and those papers may help explain his actions. Authorities have not confirmed a motive and the investigation is ongoing.
Gun violence is relatively uncommon in Greece, where firearm ownership is permitted but tightly regulated. Police said they were continuing to search for the suspect and urged anyone with information to come forward.
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