Four killed in shooting at shipping company in Greece

Four people were killed this Monday in a shootout at the premises of a shipping company in the suburb of Glyfada, south of Athens, police sources said.

Three of the victims were shot by a man who was also found dead with a pistol at his side, according to the ANA news agency and several Greek media outlets, citing the French news agency AFP.

According to local media, the shooter, believed to be a former employee of European Product Carriers, entered the building and opened fire on employees, killing two men and a woman.

A police source said the shooter later barricaded himself inside the premises.

He was later found dead “in the basement of a building with a rifle nearby,” according to the same source.

“According to preliminary information, it appears that he committed suicide,” a police spokesman told AFP.

Greek media described the man, whose identity has not been revealed, as a former employee fired from a company based in Glyfada, a seaside suburb of Athens.

Police previously said they removed two women from the building after the attacker had locked them in their bathrooms.

The incident led to a hostage crisis, with police, members of an elite anti-terrorism unit, fire trucks and ambulances parked outside the building.

Police cordoned off a large area around the company’s premises.

“I heard shots, I heard the first two. I went up to the stairs to see what was going on. I saw two guys coming down,” a witness identified as a company employee told reporters outside the building.

“Of course I ran outside, into the garden and out the back door of the garage,” he added.

The shooting occurred around 10:20 local time (08:20 Lisbon time).

European Product Carriers was founded in 1979 and has an average fleet of 35 vessels, including many oil tankers, according to its website.

Besides Piraeus, an important port near Athens, many Greek and foreign shipping companies have facilities in Glyfada, a seaside resort south of Athens.