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At least three dead as gunman opens fire in Italian court | |
(about 2 hours later) | |
At least three people have died, including a judge, after a defendant in a bankruptcy trial opened fire in a Milan court. | |
The suspected gunman, named in Italian media as Claudio Giardiello, was arrested after fleeing the Palace of Justice on a motorbike. | |
Prosecutor Edmondo Bruti Liberati identified the dead judge as Fernando Ciampi, who worked in the civil section of the bankruptcy court. Lawyer Lorenzo Alberto Claris Appiani and Giardiello’s co-defendant and relative Giorgio Erba were also killed, Italian media reported. | |
Itay’s ANSA news agency reported that a fourth person had died but there were no signs they had been hit by a bullet, and may have had a heart attack during the incident. Another co-defendent and relative, Davide Limongelli, were injured. | |
Police scoured the building for the suspect as officials and staff barricaded themselves inside their offices. Giardiello escaped but was arrested in Vimercate, 16 miles from Milan, about 90 minutes later. | Police scoured the building for the suspect as officials and staff barricaded themselves inside their offices. Giardiello escaped but was arrested in Vimercate, 16 miles from Milan, about 90 minutes later. |
Italy’s interior minister, Angelino Alfano, confirmed the arrest of the “presumed assassin” in a tweet, and said the suspect was being held in police custody. | Italy’s interior minister, Angelino Alfano, confirmed the arrest of the “presumed assassin” in a tweet, and said the suspect was being held in police custody. |
Italian media said the gunman had opened fire on the third floor of the Palace of Justice, where he was on trial over the collapse of a business of which he was the majority shareholder. A fight reportedly began in the courtroom during the cross-examination, at which point Giardiello is alleged to have pulled out a gun, killing Appiani and wounding another person. | Italian media said the gunman had opened fire on the third floor of the Palace of Justice, where he was on trial over the collapse of a business of which he was the majority shareholder. A fight reportedly began in the courtroom during the cross-examination, at which point Giardiello is alleged to have pulled out a gun, killing Appiani and wounding another person. |
He is said to have then fled the room and made his way to Ciampi’s office and fired again, killing the judge instantly. La Repubblica said the gunman had remained hidden in the courthouse for more than an hour as armed police sealed off all exits and combed the building. He managed to leave the building and escape by motorcycle, Alfano said. | He is said to have then fled the room and made his way to Ciampi’s office and fired again, killing the judge instantly. La Repubblica said the gunman had remained hidden in the courthouse for more than an hour as armed police sealed off all exits and combed the building. He managed to leave the building and escape by motorcycle, Alfano said. |
Lawyer Marcello Ilia told Agence France-Presse outside court: “All of a sudden we heard at least three or four shots. We tried to find out what was going on. There were suddenly lots of police officers who told us not to leave the room, they shut us in. | |
“After a few minutes we came out. They told us someone in a suit and tie was armed and at large in the court.” | “After a few minutes we came out. They told us someone in a suit and tie was armed and at large in the court.” |
Valerio Maraniello, who once acted as a lawyer for Giardiello, told AFP his ex-client was “an aggressive person, a little paranoid”. | |
“He was always convinced people were trying to cheat him. He never listened to advice,” he said. | |
Judge Gherardo Colombo told journalists outside the court that he was “dazed and shocked” by the shootout. “I knew Judge Ciampi personally, it’s absurd that one can die like that, while you’re doing your job,” he said, suggesting “an anti-judiciary climate” may be to blame. | |
Regional authorities were shocked that anyone had managed to get into the court building with a gun. “It’s disturbing that just anyone can get into the Palace of Justice armed,” said the head of the Lombardy region, Roberto Maroni. | |
“The fact that we’re not talking about an organisation which surveyed the place first makes it even more perturbing,” he said. | |
The Palace of Justice is in the historic centre of Milan, only a few streets away from the city’s cathedral and shopping district. | The Palace of Justice is in the historic centre of Milan, only a few streets away from the city’s cathedral and shopping district. |