At least three people have died, including a judge, after a defendant in a bankruptcy trial opened fire in a Milan court on Thursday morning.

The suspected gunman, named in Italian media as Claudio Giardiello, was arrested after fleeing the Palace of Justice on a motorbike.

Police scoured the building for the suspect as officials and staff barricaded themselves inside their offices. He escaped but was arrested in Vimercate, 16 miles from Milan.

Italy's interior minister, Angelino Alfano, confirmed the arrest of the "presumed assassin" in a tweet, and said the suspect was being held in police custody.

The dead judge was identified as Fernando Ciampi, who worked in the civil section of the bankruptcy court. Lawyer Lorenzo Alberto Claris Appiani and Giardiello's co-defendant Giorgio Erba were also killed, Italian media reported.