A judge in Albania has been shot dead after a man opened fire during a trial at the Court of Appeal in the capital, Tirana.Judge Astrit Kalaja died en route to hospital, officials said, while two others involved in the hearing over a property dispute – a father and son – were shot but sustained injuries that were not life-threatening.Police said they had arrested a 30-year-old male suspect who they identified by the initials “E Sh”, but Albanian media have named as Elvis Shkëmbi. His uncle, a defendant in the case, has also been arrested, as has a security guard whom, the authorities claim, let the alleged gunman into the building, even after he set off a metal detector.Albanian state police say Mr Shkëmbi shot Judge Kalaja “several times” using a pistol which he removed from his belt immediately after a verdict was announced.He then allegedly turned the gun on the two plaintiffs, wounding them both.According to the authorities, the 63-year-old security officer, who they refer to as “BK”, failed to physically check the two men or to register them in a “protocol book” where all people entering or leaving the Court of Appeal must be recorded.The suspect and his uncle were then able to hang around the lobby for nearly an hour prior to the hearing. After the shooting, Mr Shkëmbi allegedly left the room and handed a pistol to a court clerk.His uncle “did not take any action to stop his nephew’s criminal actions”, police said, adding that this “creates reasonable suspicion that he was aware of the plan to execute the judge in the case, in t …
