All four defendants guilty in Chalkidiki amusement park ride death that killed a 19-year-old
The Mixed Jury Court of Giannitsa convicted the owner, his wife, the operator of the Crazy Dance ride and the certifying engineer over the August 2024 crash, accepting the prosecutor's case that the ride was a dangerously corroded homemade machine.
Verdict delivered
The Mixed Jury Court of Giannitsa found all four defendants guilty on 13 June 2026, at the conclusion of a months-long trial into the August 2024 accident at a seaside amusement park in Pefkochori, Chalkidiki. A 19-year-old man died when the "Crazy Dance" ride failed; his brother, who was also on the ride, survived. The judges, both professional and lay jurors, followed the prosecutor's recommendation in full to convict every accused.
The charges
The 60-year-old park owner was convicted of homicide with potential intent, completed for the 19-year-old and in attempt for his brother. His wife, who co-managed the business, was convicted of simple complicity in the same crimes. The 21-year-old ride operator was convicted of deadly exposure, simple exposure and causing very light bodily harm. An external mechanical engineer who had supplied operating certificates for the machine was convicted of simple complicity in homicide with potential intent, both completed and attempted.
If he had cared, he would have had safety knowledge to protect the passengers themselves; he would have cared about checking.
Prosecutor described a disaster waiting to happen
In her closing address, the presiding prosecutor characterised the Crazy Dance as a homemade machine, built without safety standards or specifications. She argued that advanced, widespread corrosion from years of neglect had left the structure so dangerous that failure was only a matter of time, regardless of the weight or speed of riders. The owner had not carried out any maintenance work and had not secured the ride properly. He hired a young, inexperienced operator, failed to train him correctly, and took no step, such as fitting a speed limiter, to stop the operator from running the ride too fast.
He proceeded to operate without any significant safety measure, essentially running a piece of junk.
- 19-year-old dies when the Crazy Dance ride collapses at a Pefkochori amusement park, Chalkidiki. His brother, on the same ride, survives.
- Mixed Jury Court of Giannitsa convicts all four defendants. The court accepts the prosecutor's depiction of the ride as a corroded, unsafe homemade machine.
What comes next
All four defendants had been referred on charges of homicide with potential intent, committed jointly or as accessories. The owner was the only one held in custody during the trial; the others had been released under restrictive conditions. The court is now hearing arguments over possible mitigating factors, after which the presiding judge will announce the sentences.
