Priest In Greece ‘Sprinkled’ Seven Bishops With Acid During Disciplinary Hearing

A priest in Athens has been detained for pouring acid on seven Greek Orthodox bishops. On Wednesday, the priest was attending a disciplinary hearing at the Petraki Monastery over his 2018 arrest on the possession of drugs, obtaining 1.8 grams of cocaine hidden under his cassock.

After the bishops told the 37-year-old priest that he would be excommunicated, the priest got up, pulled two bottles from his bag, and began blasting the bishops with a caustic liquid, apparently acid, according to the local daily Ta Nea.

Three bishops were brought to the hospital for burns, with two of them in critical condition. A law enforcement officer who attempted to assist the bishops were also hospitalized.

Bloodstains and acid burns were visible on the walls where the trial was convened, and on the tables where the bishops had been sitting, in photographs broadcast on state-run ERT TV from the scene of the incident in central Athens.

Blood and burn holes were also found on the bishops' robes.

“My first thought was that it was holy water,” one of the bishops told the newspaper.

However, he soon realized what the chemical was since it produced instant eye stinging. When the liquid struck another bishop's face, he claimed he saw his face "changed color."

According to a witness, the priest attempted to flee after throwing the acid on the bishops but was stopped by a security guard who threw himself on the offender.

Cops responded shortly after and arrested the priest. He is currently being held at the Athens Security Sub-Directorate.

The incident also harmed two lawyers and one security guard.

On local TV station ANT1, the priest's lawyer, who was among those injured in the attack, apologized on behalf of his client, saying that the priest required mental care and that he had attempted to kill himself earlier this year.

“The suspect is a psychiatric patient who is taking strong medication,” lawyer Andreas Theodoropoulos told the TV outlet. “He did not fully comprehend the consequences of his action but was responding to a perceived injustice.”

Archbishop Ieronymos, the head of the Greek Orthodox Church, and Vassilis Kikilias, the Greek health minister, visited the victims in hospital.

Kikilias described the situation as "unprecedented and tragic," while Ieronymos expressed remorse but said, "fortunately, we avoided the worst."