Greek police officer loses MP5 submachine gun after supermarket bag tears on the road

The loss

On Monday, 2 November 2026, a police officer lost a service MP5 submachine gun, a stun grenade and his service radio while heading to a guard duty assignment. The sources agree on the core facts but not on the place: one puts the incident in Pallini, two in Chalandri, and one in Rafina, where the officer is reportedly posted. Timing also varies, with accounts giving a time shortly after 14:00 and one putting it at around 14:10.

According to the reports, the officer rode a motorbike and carried the equipment in a supermarket bag hung from the bike, rather than transporting it under the prescribed security procedures. One account says the equipment had been issued by the local police station. During the journey the bag tore or opened, and the items dropped onto the road. The officer only realised what had happened afterwards.

Recovery and the search

The officer went back to the spot where the items had fallen. He found the stun grenade and the radio, but the MP5 was no longer there. Police continue to search for the submachine gun, and the authorities are examining the conditions under which the loss occurred. None of the sources says whether the weapon has since been traced, so its whereabouts remain unknown at the time of these reports.

The search is the central open question. A weapon that has left a police officer's control without a known location is a matter of public safety, and the reports give no indication of how long it may have been on the road before anyone noticed it was missing. The accounts also do not say whether the bag was the only container used or whether the officer had been given other transport options.

Arrest and charges

Police arrested the officer. He is accused of breaching the weapons law and the rules for the secure custody of service equipment. Two accounts say he was released on an oral order from the prosecutor, while another says a case file was opened against him. The reports do not say whether any further charges have been filed or whether any disciplinary proceedings have been started.

The officer was on his way to a guard duty assignment when the loss happened. One report describes the assignment as guarding a target, while the others simply refer to a guard duty shift. The officer's name has not been published in any of the reports, and no source identifies his age beyond the one given in a single account.

Differences between the accounts

The four reports differ on details. Pallini, Chalandri and Rafina are each named as the location, and the times range from shortly after 14:00 to around 14:10. The reports also describe the bag differently, with some saying it opened and others saying it tore. These differences do not change the core facts: the MP5, the grenade and the radio fell from the bag during the ride, the grenade and radio were recovered, the MP5 was not, and the officer faces weapons-related charges.