Shipping company denies triple killer was given a home

The shipping company where a former caretaker opened fire on Monday killing three people and himself by suicide has denied reports that the perpetrator had been given a home after his employment with the company was terminated.

In a statement, European Product Carriers said that the former employee, a 76-year-old Egyptian national, received 74,862 euros when his employment contract was terminated on March 31, 2023, after 36 years’ service.

The man killed the owner of the shipping company Maria Karnesi, managing director Antonis Vlassakis and ship captain Ilias Koukoularis in the attack at the firm’s offices in Glyfada, southern Athens.

“Never did the company nor Maria Karnesi grant the murderer a house to live in Glyfada,” the company said, noting that the “cold and unrepentant killer” had considerable bank savings.

Media reports after the murders suggested that the killer had been ordered to leave a house he had been given to live in by the company and that his dismissal had taken place recently.

“This completely immoral and criminal act is not only heinous but there is no justification for it,” the company said.

The company added that, since his termination, the killer “provided his services as a caretaker on the estate of another member of the Karnesis family, with whom the murdered people had no relationship whatsoever.”