Greek court jails 49-year-old over fatal 2023 Pieria motorbike race

The verdict

A three-member criminal appeals court in Thessaloniki found a 49-year-old man guilty of dangerous driving that led to another person's death, and he is being taken to prison to serve a six-year sentence. The court treated him as the moral perpetrator of the offence because he owned one of the two motorcycles used in the races. A 26-year-old motorcyclist who took part in the contest was sentenced to five years, but that term is suspended pending the appeal, so he remains free. Both men were granted the mitigating factor of previous lawful conduct, and the 26-year-old also received the mitigation for being in the post-adolescent age bracket. The ruling was reported on 9 November 2026.

How the crash happened

According to the indictment, the crash took place in March 2023 on a side road off the PATHE highway at Varikó in Pieria, during improvised speed contests. The two motorcyclists raced over a straight of 400 metres. Afterwards, prosecutors said, both riders accelerated back along the route, probably after agreeing to a second race. On the return run one motorcyclist collided with a moped that had moved onto the course. The 22-year-old rider of the motorcycle and the 20-year-old moped rider were fatally injured. Two young spectators, aged 21 and 17 at the time, were also injured while watching the race.

Charges and testimony

The 26-year-old was charged as the rider who took part in the contest, while the 49-year-old was charged as the moral perpetrator. The indictment says he had lent the second motorcycle, along with a motorcycle racing suit, to the 22-year-old who later died. The father of the 20-year-old moped rider testified as a witness in court. He said friends from the race told him that his son had been hit, and that he went straight to the hospital and then identified the body. He also said he had heard the roar of the bikes from his balcony for years, and that a person invited riders through a phone app, drawing dozens of children from surrounding villages. In his account the races were run for betting, and some people earned money from them over several years. These claims come from his court testimony and were not established as findings of the court.