A Georgian man was stabbed to death on Crete late on Sunday, allegedly by three locals, but police in Rethymnon played down the incident yesterday, less than a month after an Albanian teenager was murdered in a similar fashion, heightening inter-ethnic tension on the island.

The latest incident occurred when the 29-year-old Georgian, who was not named, was attacked in a nightclub in Aghia Galani. The victim was stabbed in the leg and bled to death before he could be taken to hospital. He had a young son, police said.

An unnamed 24-year-old Greek, wanted for the stabbing, gave himself up to police in Rethymnon yesterday afternoon, but officers are also looking for two other men in connection with the attack. It is thought the men became embroiled in a fight over their affection for a barmaid at the nightclub.

Local police sources told Kathimerini that the incident was a one-off event and was not linked to the fatal stabbing of a 17-year-old Albanian in Rethymnon by a group of Greeks on New Year’s Day.