Three defendants have been killed in a court in the Russian capital, Moscow, after they tried to take the arms from security officers, officials say.

The incident happened as five suspected gang members attacked the agents who were escorting them in a lift to a court hearing, the Interior Ministry said.

Three were killed when trying to escape. The two others suspects and three security officers were wounded.

The building was briefly evacuated.

The defendants were on trial for "banditry", the ministry said in a statement without identifying them.

But state-owned Tass news agency reported that they were accused of being part of the notorious GTA Gang, named after the violent game series Grand Theft Auto (GTA).

The group of Central Asian nationals was suspected of killing 17 motorists in the Moscow area between 2012 and 2014.

A lawyer who was at the building when the incident happened said that at least 20 shots were heard.

The security officers injured include a Russian National Guard member, who sustained a gunshot wound and was taken to hospital, and two police officers, who sustained various injuries, according to the ministry.