TIRANA, Albania (AP) — Police in Albania say that a man has been shot dead in a gunbattle with officers during an annual event to celebrate Greece's entry in World War II against Italy.

Police said in a statement Sunday said that 35-year-old Konstantinos Kacifa first started shooting in the air in the village of Bularat, 255 kilometers (160 miles) south of the capital, Tirana.

Then the man fired at approaching police cars before running away. Kacifa hid on a nearby mountain and continued to fire at officers. Police said he died in the exchange of fire.

Kacifa, an ethnic Greek, was born in Bularat but had most recently been living in Athens. Police and prosecutors were investigating a motive for the man's actions.