Four Dead in Shooting Spree at Greek Shipping Company

Four people died during a shooting incident at a Greek shipping company in the southern Athens suburb of Glyfada on Monday.

The gunman, allegedly a former employee of the company, entered the building and opened fire on employees, resulting in the deaths of three individuals before turning the gun on himself.

The perpetrator has been identified as a 70-year-old Egyptian national. Some reports suggest that he had been terminated from his position at the firm.

Witnesses said that the perpetrator entered the company’s premises from the parking lot, as he still had the right to access the building. Upon entering, he said he was going in to clean up.

He approached the people who were his targets, the owner of the company and two other individuals.

“I came over here to end it, to make it clear that there is something between us,” the assailant reportedly said.

He first went up to the mezzanine, where he shot two people and then stopped on the second floor, where he shot one more person, reportedly the owner of the company.

Shooting at Greek company prompted a hostage situation

The incident prompted a hostage situation. Police, members of the elite counterterrorism unit EKAM, fire engines, and ambulances were stationed outside the building, and police had cordoned off a wider area around it.

While police have not officially disclosed the name of the company involved, reports have identified it as European Navigation.

European Navigation Inc. was established in 1979. Historically, the group has managed an average fleet of about 35 vessels spanning from chemical tankers to VLCC’s and handysize to large VLOC’s / Capesize bulk carriers.

The company manages a fleet of about 1,200,000 DWT under European Product Carriers Ltd. The fleet currently consists of two DP2 Suezmaxes shuttle tankers built in 2013 at STX (Korea), four LR2 tankers, and eight MR tankers all built between 2001 and 2005. Three small tankers for the domestic Greek market were built between 2004 and 2006.

Throughout its history, the company has followed a conservative expansion strategy and currently has an order book for five MR tankers at STX in Korea for delivery end 2014 and early 2015.

European Navigation Inc. main offices are located in Athens, Greece. The group also maintains representative offices in London and New York responsible for all commercial activities—mainly chartering, S&P, finance, and insurance.

The office in Athens is responsible for technical management, operations, insurance, and crewing. The crew for the fleet is being sourced through the group’s Manila Crewing Academy under the established office in Manila, which has been in operation over twenty years.

This is a developing story.