Acropolis knife attack on two Greek-Americans!
A 60-year-old homeless man with known psychiatric problems attacked two Greek-American tourists with a knife at the Acropolis, causing minor injuries before being arrested.
The knife attack took place on the morning of Tuesday, July 21, at the southern entrance of the archaeological site, opposite the Acropolis Museum. The man approached the couple without any provocation and inflicted minor injuries. The tourists are being treated in hospital and are out of danger.
Police officers who arrived immediately at the scene immobilized and arrested the perpetrator. Criminal charges are being filed against him.
Who is the 60-year-old perpetrator
The 60-year-old has repeatedly drawn the attention of authorities both for psychiatric incidents and for previous offenses. On June 12, 2026, specifically, police officers from the Kypseli Police Station transferred him to the Athens General Hospital “Georgios Gennimatas,” where he was hospitalized in the psychiatric clinic.
It was not the first time. In 2014 he had been transferred for hospitalization to the Psychiatric Hospital of Attica “Dafni” by the same police station. Additionally, in 2022 a prosecutor’s order had been issued for his confinement in a psychiatric institution, which however was not executed because the man was not located.
According to information, the 60-year-old is homeless. In June he had been arrested in Kypseli for insult, while in 2019 he had been arrested in Syntagma for possession of a knife.
The timeline of the attack
A passing citizen notified the Immediate Action Center that a man was holding a knife and threatening passersby. When police officers arrived, they determined that he had already injured the couple of tourists. An Immediate Action motorcycle and an EKAB ambulance rushed to the scene, providing first aid. A short time later the perpetrator was arrested.
The case highlights once again the gaps in handling individuals with serious psychiatric problems who circulate freely despite previous interventions by authorities.
