Athanasia Sykiotou was born in Athens and studied law at the Law School of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens. She continued her postgraduate studies at the University of Sorbonne (Paris 1, Panthéon-Sorbonne), where she earned her Ph.D. in Criminal Policy with “Highest Distinction and Honors.” She is a Professor of Criminological Sciences at the Law School of the Democritus University of Thrace and the Director of the Criminological Sciences Laboratory. Additionally, she serves as an expert for the Council of Europe and the United Nations on issues primarily related to organized crime, child protection, and combating gender-based violence.

She is the President of the Central Scientific Council of Prisons at the Ministry of Citizen Protection and has been an expert for the Ministry of Justice for many years. She has authored approximately one hundred works in Greek, English, and French. She has participated in numerous scientific conferences and research projects in Greece and abroad and has been invited as a visiting professor to teach at several universities internationally. She has made significant legislative contributions, particularly abroad, to harmonize national legal frameworks, especially in the areas of prevention, suppression, and prosecution of organized crime.