NEWS

Businessman takes legal action against Supreme Court chief

Businessman takes legal action against Supreme Court chief

The chairman of Marfin Investment Group (MIG), Andreas Vgenopoulos, is taking legal action against Supreme Court President Vasiliki Thanou, alleging bribery of judicial officials, attempted blackmail and using her position to influence the legal proceedings regarding the extradition to Cyprus of two of his associates and former board members of the now defunct Laiki Bank, Efthymios Bouloutas and Markos Foros.

“These acts concern the president of the Supreme Court, Ms Vasiliki Thanou, a businesswoman friend of hers and possibly other people as well,” Vgenopoulos said during a press conference on Wednesday, and claimed that Cypriot authorities were demanding the extradition of Bouloutas and Foros for questioning on trumped-up charges of mismanagement at Laiki.

He also called on the Justice Ministry not to act on the European arrest warrants issued by Cyprus in February for the two men until there is a final ruling on the case.
Last month Thanou quit her role in the probe into Vgenopoulos’s business dealings in Laiki Bank after prosecutor Georgia Tsatani asked for her removal from the investigation because she allegedly used her influence in a bid get a new prosecutor on the case.

Vgenopoulos also accused Thanou of backing the interests of Cyprus in its dispute with MIG and 18 Greek nationals at the International Court of Arbitration.

“She is blindly supporting the interests of Cyprus,” he said.

Subscribe to our Newsletters

Enter your information below to receive our weekly newsletters with the latest insights, opinion pieces and current events straight to your inbox.

By signing up you are agreeing to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.