In Larissa, an off-duty police officer played a pivotal role in resolving a tense hostage situation involving a 50-year-old man who held his estranged wife captive in their apartment on Thursday, June 25. The man threatened her with an axe and a canister of gasoline while broadcasting live on social media.
A calm, calculated intervention
Video footage released publicly showed the man brandishing an axe and a container of flammable liquid inside the apartment. His wife, visibly distressed but attempting to remain composed, was forced to follow his instructions—moving around the home and onto the balcony under duress. Every moment carried the risk of tragedy.
Officer Giannis Thelouras, a personal friend of the suspect, was called in around 10:30 a.m. on Friday, June 26, after being contacted by his department. He joined a specialized police negotiator and another officer on the balcony of a neighboring apartment to establish visual contact and begin dialogue.
Focus on the children
“He was on the balcony and appeared to be in very poor condition—we couldn’t communicate clearly at first,” Thelouras told ANT1’s morning show. After gaining entry to the apartment, the team worked to de-escalate the situation. “We tried to convince him this path leads nowhere,” he said.
The breakthrough came when Thelouras repeatedly reminded the man of his children. “The key point that convinced him to surrender was his children,” he explained. “I kept telling him to think about them—to stop now. That’s when he broke down, and everything ended.”
The man had been demanding to speak directly with the prosecutor who issued protective measures preventing him from seeing his children—a decision stemming from prior family court proceedings.
Legal aftermath
The suspect appeared before the Larissa Misdemeanor Court (Monomember Summary Court), where the ex-wife’s lawyer requested protective measures for her client. According to Officer Thelouras, the woman remained remarkably calm during the incident—not panicked, but deeply focused on avoiding escalation.