38-Year-Old Woman Killed in Popular Tourist Destination After Bomb She Was Carrying Detonated in Her Hands

• A 38-year-old woman was killed in an explosion after a bomb she was allegedly carrying detonated prematurely in the northern Greek city of Thessaloniki on Saturday, May 3
• The explosion damaged storefronts and vehicles parked nearby
• The woman was transported to a local hospital, where she was pronounced dead

A woman was killed in an explosion after a bomb she was allegedly carrying went off in her hands in Greece. 

The 38-year-old woman was transporting a bomb outside a bank in the northern Greek city of Thessaloniki when it detonated and killed her at around 5:00 a.m. local time on Saturday, May 3, local newspaper eKathimerini, Associated Press and Reuters reported. 

She is believed to have been attempting to plant the bomb outside the bank before it detonated prematurely in a parking lot next to the bank branch, at the intersection of Platonos and Agios Dimitriou, according to reports.

The woman was rushed to Ippokrateio Hospital, where she died from her injuries, per eKathimerini. 

“It appears that she was carrying an explosive device and planned to plant it at a bank’s ATM. Something went wrong and exploded in her hands,” a senior police official told Reuters.

Photos from the blast show several storefronts and vehicles damaged from the impact, with the windows blown off. 

The victim had a criminal record and was believed to be part of a circle closely tied to an “anti-authoritarian figure” who is currently in jail for bank robberies and bombings, eKathimerini reported, citing police officials and the Ministry of Citizen Protection.

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In February 2024, the same group allegedly sent a parcel bomb to the Thessaloniki Court of Appeal. The incident remains under investigation by the anti-terrorism officers, according to the outlet. 

The woman was previously arrested with the same anti-authoritarian figure and jailed over a bank robbery after she was found “carrying a Kalashnikov rifle in a backpack,” per eKathimerini.

The Organized Crime Directorate is investigating the incident, the outlet reported.

PEOPLE has contacted the police and the Ministry of Citizen Protection for comment.