A prosecutor in Thessaloniki yesterday ordered a probe into the fate of the pension contributions of some 4,500 municipal employees after a civil servant, responsible for handling the money, was suspended on suspicion of embezzlement.

The unnamed municipal worker allegedly led a playboy lifestyle, was part owner of some nightclubs in Thessaloniki, acted as the chairman of a lower-league basketball club and drove around the city in luxury cars. He has been accused of embezzling at least 200,000 euros from the municipal coffers.

Mayor Vassilis Papageorgopoulos refused to answer questions earlier this week when he revealed that the employee had been suspended. He is the second municipal worker in Thessaloniki to be suspended for embezzlement in less than a year.