Security concerns raised after man shoots, kills 3 inside Milan courthouse

(Image credit: Twitter.com/Chicagotribune)

last updated 10 April 2015

On Thursday, a man on trial for fraudulent bankruptcy fired 13 shots inside a Milan courthouse, killing his lawyer, co-defendant, and judge.

The man, identified as 57-year-old real estate developer Claudio Giardiello, was able to slip out of the building, and was caught in a shopping center 15 miles away about an hour later. Prosecutors say that Giardiello was still armed with a loaded pistol, and had plans to kill another business partner that he felt was behind their failed real estate venture, The Associated Press reports. The shooting has raised concerns among Italians over security in the country's courthouses, as many duties have been outsourced to private contractors.

In Italy, visitors and defendants in proceedings must go through a metal detector at the courthouse, and Prime Minister Matteo Renzi said there will be an investigation into how Giardiello was able to bring a gun into the tribunal, adding, "Our commitment is that this never happens again." Lawyers and court officials do not have the same requirement, and the chief federal prosecutor told reporters it is possible Giardiello used a forged document to gain entrance that way.

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Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.

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