ROME, Dec. 12 (Xinhua) -- Rome Mayor Roberto Gualtieri called an emergency meeting of his security advisors on Monday after what he described as a "grave episode of violence that has struck the city."
The day before, a 57-year-old man stormed into a coffee shop in northern Rome, opened fire and killed three women. Four others were wounded, one of them seriously. The man appeared to target a condominium board meeting.
The suspect was overpowered and detained by the meeting's participants. He is now in custody. According to press reports, he has a history of disputes with some of the board's members.
Italy's Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has confirmed that one of the victims was Nicoletta Golisano, a friend of hers. "I hope justice will quickly follow its course," Meloni wrote on social media.
Media reports said the shooter had posted several detailed complaints about the board of the condominium, where he lived in the basement.
According to Meloni's social media post, the suspect had been denied a permit to purchase a gun. Instead, he used one rented from a shooting range, which Meloni said has been shut down and placed under investigation.
Access to guns is restricted in Italy and mass shootings are relatively rare.
