Three arrested over Athens gas blast that killed six as police blame copper theft
Greek police have arrested three men over the gas explosion that destroyed a two-storey building in Athens and killed six people, after investigators concluded the blast was caused by copper thieves damaging a gas pipe. The arrests were announced on Thursday, 29 October, after a 34-day investigation by the Fire Service’s arson crimes unit.
The explosion happened on the morning of Friday, 25 September, on Lysikratous Street in the Plaka district, below the Acropolis. The building collapsed. Four of the dead were American tourists staying in a short-term rental flat on the first floor, and the other two were an elderly couple — a British man and his Greek wife — who lived on the second floor.
According to investigators, security cameras recorded three people outside the building at about 2 a.m., about five and a half hours before the blast. Two of them went into the stairwell and came out carrying a length of copper pipe. In removing a pipe from an inactive gas fitting on the first floor, investigators believe the men broke the live gas line supplying the flat above. Gas escaped into the stairwell and the flat over the following hours, and the explosion happened when a resident switched on an electric light.
The three suspects — two Greek men and an Albanian man — were brought before a prosecutor in Athens on Friday, 30 October, facing felony charges over the explosion. They were expected to ask for time to prepare their defence before an investigating magistrate decides whether they should be held in custody. All three are presumed innocent unless a court finds otherwise.
Why it matters
The case has shocked Greece because six people died, apparently, for a length of stolen copper pipe. It also shows how metal theft can leave hidden damage in gas pipes that residents cannot see: the leak built up silently for hours inside a building full of people, and the blast was set off by something as ordinary as switching on a light.
What happens next
Once the three men give their statements, the investigating magistrate and the prosecutor will decide on pre-trial detention, and the case will then move towards trial. Further details may emerge as the case file is examined.
Sources
- https://kwsn.com/2026/10/30/greece-arrests-three-over-explosion-that-killed-six-people-in-athens/ (Reuters, 30 October 2026)
- https://hellaslife.com/3-men-arrested-in-blast-that-killed-6-in-athens-greece/ (UPI, 30 October 2026)
- https://www.getgreece.com/post/athens-gas-explosion-arrests-copper-theft (GetGreece, 30 October 2026)
This article is for general information and education only. It is not legal or financial advice.
