A dispute over land appears to have led an 85-year-old man to shoot dead his 80-year-old neighbor on the island of Salamina, near Piraeus, yesterday before he suffered a heart attack and died.

The neighbors had been in a dispute for some time about who owned a tiny piece of land between their two plots. An argument flared when the 80-year-old grandmother began taking down a fence that her neighbor had put up around the disputed section.

The 85-year-old argued with her and then went into his house to get his hunting rifle. He returned and shot his neighbor in the chest, according to police.

The pensioner then lost consciousness and collapsed. He was taken to the local hospital after neighbors called the authorities but was declared dead from heart failure. Neither of the pensioners was named.