A foreign national was found dead in an Airbnb apartment in downtown Athens early Thursday afternoon. The man was bound hand and foot and had a plastic bag over his head.
The man was found by the apartment owner who entered the apartment to clean it.
According to media information, the victim that was found in the bed was 52 years old.
Based on the information the owner had from the lease, the victim is American, media reported.
The Airnbn apartment is located near in Omonia Square in downtown Athens.
Police officers rushed to the scene and are conducting an investigation, evaluating also available camera footage.
The first image reportedly showed that the man had locked himself outside the apartment and someone brought him keys.
Citing police sources, newsit.gr reported later that the bag found on the victim’s head was connected to a tube with an oxygen tank. His hands were loosely tied with a bathrobe belt, while the bed in the apartment was made and tidy.
What authorities are initially investigating is whether he accidentally caused his own death in some type of sexual pleasure through hypoxia.
Nevertheless, police investigates all possibilities, including crime.
According to Mega TV LiveNews magazine, the man had rented the apartment five days ago and was supposed to check out today.
On Wednesday night, he called the owner to help him enter the apartment and he was either drunk or under the influence of substances. Camera footage showed that he ultimately entered the apartment alone.
It was in 2014, when a Dutch national was found dead in a hotel room in Athens. The man had suffered a similar death, a police unionist told Mega Livenews.
UPDATE:
The victim was 46 years old and a U.S. national, state-run news agency amna.gr reported on Friday.
Citing police sources, the news agency reported that “foul play has been ruled out, and the case is believed to be a suicide.”
According to some media, the tank did not contain oxygen but nitrogen.
