Terror link in disarming of guard?

Police look into bloodless attack

The disarmament of a policeman guarding the home of the country’s top judge on Tuesday night by two armed assailants was probably a terrorist act, authorities said yesterday.

The 21-year-old guard, who had been posted outside the home of Supreme Court President Romilos Kedikoglou in the southern suburb of Glyfada, was forced out of his sentry box and disarmed shortly after 9.30 p.m. on Tuesday, police said. The assailants, who were armed and hooded, took the weapons – a semiautomatic shotgun and a service revolver – and fled without harming the officer. The guard was also deprived of his bulletproof vest, which he had taken off as his shift was about to end.

Public Order Minister Vyron Polydoras said the motives and identity of the perpetrators were being investigated. He also pledged to “review the conditions and demands governing the guarding of public figures and buildings.”

Police yesterday were examining two key scenarios, a senior official told Kathimerini. The first is that the ambush was staged by the terror group Revolutionary Struggle. In this case, the act was partly symbolic but may also have been aimed at boosting the group’s weapons arsenal. The second likely scenario is that the ambush was planned by a new terror group. In this case, a proclamation will probably be issued soon.

There was also debate about whether the perpetrators belonged to the same group as that which planned the murder of a guard outside the British military attache’s residence in December 2004. Revolutionary Struggle has denied involvement in the 2004 hit.

Police have spoken to many witnesses of Tuesday’s ambush, which occurred at a busy time. As the men were masked, police are focusing on determining their body shapes. They are also seeking people who saw the two men before or after the ambush without their masks.

Of key interest is the testimony of a female resident in the same block as Kedikoglou, who had been walking her dog when she saw the two men threatening the guard. An inspection of the sentry box revealed no fingerprints as both men had been wearing gloves.