Karatasos became a Klepht at the age of eighteen and became quite famous for his actions in the Olympus area before he joined the Revolution. In 1804, with the Armatolos Vassilios Romfeis, he defended Naoussa from the attacking forces of Ali Pasha, but he didn't manage to save the city, that was captured five months later. In March 1821, when Emmanouel Pappas started the Revolution in Chalkidiki, he collaborated with him trying to spread it through the entire region, but their actions were not well coordinated. Large numbers of Ottoman forces from Thessaloniki were able to defeat the Greek revolutionary forces, and Emmanuel Pappas was retired to Mount Athos. He returned to Naoussa which was liberated from Ottomans on February 19, 1822, under the leadership of Zafeirakis Theodosiou.