ATHENS — Greek police arrested an 89-year-old man in Patras on suspicion of shooting and wounding several people in attacks on two government buildings in Athens. The suspect was detained more than 200 kilometers west of Athens and was reportedly attempting to flee to Italy when taken into custody at a hotel, where a second weapon was found.

A gunman entered a social security office in the Kerameikos district of central Athens and opened fire with what appeared to be an antiquated shotgun, injuring a female employee in the leg. He then traveled by taxi to a nearby court in the Ambelokipi neighbourhood, where he opened fire inside an appeals court chamber while it was in session, lightly wounding four court officials. The court building was evacuated immediately as the gunman fled the scene.

Inside the courtroom, the suspect threw envelopes containing documents on the floor, claiming they explained the reasons for his actions. Stratis Dounias, head of the Athens Judicial Employees Union, said initial information indicated the man had shot at the floor inside a court office. Television footage showed ambulance crews transporting at least three people from the courthouse to ambulances, and security camera footage showed a man walking across the street carrying what appeared to be a short-barreled shotgun in his right hand.

Alexandros Varveris, head of the National Social Security Fund, said the gunman was wearing a trench coat under which he had hidden the shotgun. A relative told ERT that the suspect had a history of mental illness and had been angered by the rejection of an application for a state pension. Local media reported that he had been treated at a mental hospital in 2018.

Athens court staff announced a 24-hour strike on Wednesday in protest of the incident, blaming poor security at court buildings. Sotiris Tripolitsiotis, general secretary of the Association of Court Employees of Athens, said X-ray machines acquired to boost security in the courthouse remained unused seven years after purchase due to a lack of properly trained staff. "No one coming into the courts can really be checked," Tripolitsiotis said. Gun violence in Greece is rare and firearm ownership is permitted but tightly regulated.