A security camera captured the devastating moment when a gray vehicle crashed into a car carrying a mother and daughter, resulting in their tragic deaths in a car accident in Rhodes. The Chief Prosecutor of the Rhodes Misdemeanor Court filed two criminal charges against the defendant – for dangerous driving resulting in death and for manslaughter by negligence in series, referring him to the 2nd Regular Investigator for further proceedings.
Read: Rhodes: Charges for two felonies against driver involved in fatal crash – Mother and daughter killed
Rhodes: How the collision occurred that killed two women
See the crash at the 15-second mark of the video:
The collision occurred on the afternoon of May 17, 2026, at 2:40 PM, at the 18th kilometer of the Rhodes-Lindos National Highway, at a location known for heavy traffic. The result was devastating: one of the 2 vehicles involved overturned and the two people inside were trapped. Three fire trucks operated at the scene to free the victims, while EKAB ambulances and police forces were also mobilized. The 2 women were found unconscious. Despite doctors’ efforts, they could not survive.
The victims are Maria Chatziemmanouil, daughter of Dimitrios, aged 57, and her daughter Armonia Kakiou, daughter of Michael, aged 26. Mother and daughter were lost together, in the same car, on the same road. The driver of the other car, a Greek citizen born in 1981, was hospitalized with minor injuries. His partner, born in 2001, and his child, born in 2009, were also in his vehicle.
The defendant does not deny that he was driving at a speed exceeding the permitted limit at that location. However, he claims that the victims’ car ran a red light in order to make a U-turn and head toward Lindos, which, according to his version, made it impossible to avoid the collision. These claims will be examined.
The defendant’s defense is handled by lawyers Stelios Kiourtsis, Dimos Moutafis and Manolis Zezios. On behalf of the victims’ families, as prosecutors supporting the charges, Dimitris Ververis and Dimitriadou Kyriakoula are present.
Investigation continues
Traffic police continue to investigate the exact circumstances of the accident, attempting to reconstruct the sequence of events that led to the fatal collision. What was the exact speed of the vehicles, in which direction were they moving at the moment of impact, whether the traffic light was functioning and with what indication – all these are expected to be clarified through technical assessments and witness testimonies.
