At least two people were killed and around ten others injured after gunfire erupted on Saturday morning in the village of Vorizia, in the municipality of Faistos on the island of Crete. Authorities said the situation escalated into an armed confrontation between two families, prompting urgent reinforcements from specialized police units dispatched from Athens. The operation to stabilize the area and identify suspects is ongoing, with local hospitals treating multiple casualties.
According to the Athens-based newspaper Efimerida ton Syntakton (efsyn.gr), a high-level team led by Police Chief Lieutenant General Dimitris Mallios and the director of the Directorate for Combating Organized Crime (DAOE), Major General Fotis Doutsis, is traveling to Crete. The contingent includes DAOE’s deputy commander, Brigadier Spyros Tsardakas, and a specialized 10-person investigative group, colloquially known as the “Greek FBI,” to assist local services in probing the causes of the bloodshed, locating and arresting those responsible, and examining links to a bombing the previous evening that reportedly triggered the armed clash. The elite EKAM unit is expected to maintain a permanent presence in the village, alongside existing TAE Crete and OPKE teams, to prevent the violence from continuing and to uphold order.
Initial accounts from medical facilities and police varied on casualty details as the situation unfolded. The director of Venizeleio Hospital, Kostas Dandoulakis, confirmed that a 35-year-old man arrived deceased, while a woman was transported dead to the University General Hospital of Heraklion (PAGNI). A strong police presence was established at the hospitals as more injured arrived. The Hellenic Police later issued an official statement confirming the fatal injuries of a 39-year-old man and a 56-year-old woman, the wounding of two women who were hospitalized, and the subsequent identification of two injured men under guard whose involvement is being examined. Authorities said they were alerted by residents in the morning and responded immediately with units from EKAM, TAE, and OPKE, as well as investigators from the regional crime division. The General Regional Police Director of Crete coordinated on site.
Police sources indicated that unknown assailants entered the village and opened fire indiscriminately, spreading fear among residents. The attack is believed to have been carried out in retaliation for an explosion at a construction site on Friday night, attributed to an explosive device, which heightened tensions between the two families involved.
Emergency medical responders described a complex and dangerous scene. The National Emergency Aid Center (EKAV) received a call at 11:18 a.m. reporting an exchange of gunfire in Vorizia with an unclear number of victims. Five ambulances, including a mobile medical unit and a small vehicle with a doctor, were mobilized, with two additional ambulances placed on standby from the health centers of Agia Varvara and Moires. Due to the risks at the scene and under police direction, EKAV teams staged at the Moires Health Center until authorities granted permission to enter the village. EKAV reported transporting two injured women to PAGNI; two injured men from a private clinic in Heraklion to PAGNI; a woman without vital signs to PAGNI; and a man without vital signs to Venizeleio Hospital, totaling six transfers.
Police and emergency services remain in heightened readiness as the investigation continues. Officials cautioned that casualty figures and details may be updated as more information becomes available.
Photo: The source