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Murder of Eleni Topaloudi

SOLVED2018Pefki, Rhodes, Greece3 SOURCESUPDATED JUL 2026
Illustrative

Eleni Topaloudi was a Greek university student born on January 15, 1997, in the town of Didymoteicho. At the time of her death she was a fourth-year student in the Department of Mediterranean Studies at the Aegean University. On November 28, 2018, she was gang-raped and murdered on the island of Rhodes, Greece, by two men she had accompanied to one of their residences.

According to the case's Wikipedia article, Topaloudi refused the men's sexual advances once inside the residence, which provoked a violent response. A forensic report found that she was subjected to a gang rape and then struck with a metal object, causing her to lose consciousness; she had suffered heavy blunt trauma to her head, fracturing her skull and causing a brain hemorrhage. The two men then carried her unconscious body to a nearby beach and threw her into the sea. According to the coroner, she was still alive at that point; after being thrown onto rocks, she lost consciousness completely from the trauma and drowned. Her body was found floating off "Fokia" beach near Pefki, Rhodes, later that same day and was recovered by the Hellenic Coast Guard. Investigators later found DNA material belonging to Topaloudi in one of the men's cars.

Manolis Koukouras and Aleksandër Luca were apprehended on December 5, 2018, after investigators reviewed audiovisual material and DNA samples; both men initially confessed. Authorities said that same month that Koukouras had a history of violence, including previous reports filed against him. In his initial testimony, Luca said Topaloudi had been tortured inside the apartment and had begged the two men to take her to a hospital. The interrogation phase lasted ten months in total, and the case file was closed on June 15, 2019, once investigators had gathered the material evidence needed for trial. During later testimony, the two men gave conflicting accounts, each attempting to place more blame on the other.

The trial opened on January 13, 2020, in the Mixed Jury Court of Athens and lasted almost five months. On May 15, 2020, the jury unanimously found both men guilty of gang-rape and first-degree murder; each was sentenced to life imprisonment plus 15 years, with no reduction in sentence. In a separate trial concluding June 12, 2020, Luca was also convicted of raping a 19-year-old woman with a disability, an assault that took place four days after Topaloudi's murder; he received an additional 15-year sentence for that offense. An appellate court upheld the original sentences in May 2022.

The case drew sustained attention from feminist organizations and human-rights groups in Greece and beyond, and became a reference point for public discussion of gender-based violence in the country. According to the Wikipedia article, it was the first time Greek media used the term "femicide" to describe the killing of a woman, a term that has since been applied more broadly to similar killings. Topaloudi's family, in their first public statements after the trial, called for greater awareness of violence against women and urged other victims to report crimes against them.

Key facts

Victims
Eleni Topaloudi
Date
2018
Location
Pefki, Rhodes, Greece
Case status
solved

Case timeline

  1. 1997-01-15

    Eleni Topaloudi is born in Didymoteicho, Greece.

  2. 2018-11-28

    Eleni Topaloudi is gang-raped and fatally assaulted by two men on the island of Rhodes after refusing their sexual advances; her body is found later that day floating off "Fokia" beach near Pefki and is recovered by the Hellenic Coast Guard.

  3. 2018-12-05

    Manolis Koukouras and Aleksandër Luca are apprehended after investigators review audiovisual material and DNA evidence; both men initially confess.

  4. 2019-06-15

    The case file is closed and evidence collection is halted as investigators complete gathering material evidence for trial.

  5. 2020-01-13

    The trial of Koukouras and Luca opens in the Mixed Jury Court of Athens.

  6. 2020-05-15

    The jury unanimously convicts both men of gang-rape and first-degree murder; each is sentenced to life imprisonment plus 15 years.

  7. 2020-06-12

    A second trial concludes with Aleksandër Luca convicted of raping a 19-year-old woman with a disability, an assault that occurred four days after Topaloudi's murder; he is sentenced to an additional 15 years.

  8. 2022-05

    An appellate court upholds the original sentences against Koukouras and Luca.

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People

  • Aleksandër Luca

    CONVICTED

    Convicted of first-degree murder and gang-rape of Eleni Topaloudi in the Mixed Jury Court of Athens on May 15, 2020; sentenced to life imprisonment plus 15 years, upheld on appeal in May 2022. In a separate trial concluding June 12, 2020, also convicted of raping a 19-year-old woman with a disability in an assault that occurred four days after Topaloudi's murder, for which he received an additional 15-year sentence.

  • Eleni Topaloudi

    VICTIM

    Greek university student from Didymoteicho; gang-raped and murdered on the island of Rhodes on November 28, 2018.

  • Manolis Koukouras

    CONVICTED

    Convicted of first-degree murder and gang-rape of Eleni Topaloudi in the Mixed Jury Court of Athens on May 15, 2020; sentenced to life imprisonment plus 15 years. An appellate court upheld the sentence in May 2022.

Roles reflect public records and court outcomes at the time of writing — supporting citations are on file under Sources.

Places

Pefki, Rhodes, Greece

38.0667, 23.8000

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Common questions

What happened to the victim?
Eleni Topaloudi, a Greek university student, was gang-raped and murdered on the island of Rhodes on November 28, 2018; her body was recovered from the sea near Pefki the same day. Two men, Manolis Koukouras and Aleksandër Luca, were convicted of gang-rape and first-degree murder in May 2020 and each sentenced to life imprisonment plus 15 years.
Where did the murder happen?
Pefki, Rhodes, Greece.
Who was convicted?
Aleksandër Luca (Convicted of first-degree murder and gang-rape of Eleni Topaloudi in the Mixed Jury Court of Athens on May 15, 2020; sentenced to life imprisonment plus 15 years, upheld on appeal in May 2022. In a separate trial concluding June 12, 2020, also convicted of raping a 19-year-old woman with a disability in an assault that occurred four days after Topaloudi's murder, for which he received an additional 15-year sentence.) and Manolis Koukouras (Convicted of first-degree murder and gang-rape of Eleni Topaloudi in the Mixed Jury Court of Athens on May 15, 2020; sentenced to life imprisonment plus 15 years. An appellate court upheld the sentence in May 2022.).
What is the current status of the case?
Status: solved.
More cases in Greece

Sources

  1. ENCYCLOPEDICMurder of Eleni TopaloudiWikipedia · 2026-07-12
  2. PRESSContemporaneous coverage — cnn.grcnn.gr · 2026-07-12
  3. PRESSContemporaneous coverage — kathimerini.grkathimerini.gr · 2026-07-12

Record history

First published
JUL 13, 2026