Hostage incident ends in Greece

A hostage incident in Greece ended Friday when a fired worker surrendered after allegedly shooting and wounding three people at a factory, authorities said. Dimitrios Manikas, 52, is accused of entering the Helesi plastic garbage bin manufacturing plant in Komotini at 1 p.m. Thursday with a hunting rifle and demanding his job back, Ekathimerini reported. When the 51-year-old plant manager refused, Manikas allegedly shot him in the arm and ribs, then shot a 30-year-old worker from Bulgaria in the leg, the Greek newspaper said. The gunman then took two company drivers, ages 51 and 64, hostage and shot at police who arrived a few minutes later, wounding one officer slightly in the hand, the newspaper said. The two wounded plant employees escaped and were expected to survive their wounds. Manikas, a divorced father of two who had been fired in August after working at the plant for more than a decade, freed the hostages and surrendered to police negotiators about 1 a.m. Friday, Ekathimerini said. Helesi said in a statement posted to its Web site Manikas was dismissed because his behavior had been "inappropriate" and he had multiple run-ins with co-workers.