1 killed, 1 injured after gunman opens fire inside magistrates' court in Russia’s Siberia

One man died and a woman was seriously injured when a gunman opened fire inside a courthouse in the city of Novokuznetsk in southwestern Siberia. The suspect, who was armed with a rifle, has been apprehended.

The prosecutor's office in Kemerovo Region, where the magistrates’ court is located, has launched a probe into the attempted murder.

The attack unfolded at around 9:20am local time on Thursday. The assailant was detained at the scene and taken into custody.

A male court officer suffered a gunshot wound to his stomach in the attack and died in an ambulance en route to hospital.

A woman, who was attending court as a witness, was also seriously injured, suffering wounds to her leg and face. She has been taken to hospital in a serious condition.

There has been conflicting information about the identity of the attacker.

There were unconfirmed reports that the assailant might have been an aggrieved defendant who left the courtroom mid-hearing, only to return with a firearm that he allegedly kept in his vehicle. As the man re-entered the building, armed with a deadly weapon, a court officer attempted to stop him but was shot dead in the process, a law enforcement source told TASS. The shooter then moved to the courtroom, where he fired at another person, the source told the agency.

However, another source with knowledge of the investigation told Interfax news agency that the shooter was in fact a victim in a criminal case.

“It has been preliminarily established that the gunman was a victim in a criminal case that was being heard by the court. The injured woman is a witness,” the source said.

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