Noose tightens on November 17

Police detain a 13th suspect as net closes on operational members and historical leaders

Police yesterday officially identified a suspect whom they arrested on Wednesday as one of the original members of November 17, saying he had taken part in the group's first act, the murder of CIA station chief Richard Welch 27 years ago. The suspect, Pavlos Serifis, 46, was charged with a number of crimes relating to his alleged membership in November 17, but not with Welch's murder because of a 20-year statute of limitations.

At the same time, police announced the arrest of a man believed to be one of the group's most experienced killers, Patroklos Tselentis.

As the days pass, police are using confessions and evidence to understand the structure, membership and inner workings of November 17. The discovery of groups of the same unidentified fingerprints both in the gang's Pangrati hideout and alleged leader Alexandros Yotopoulos's holiday home on the island of Leipsoi suggest the existence of more members not known to police. So far, they had formed the picture of a close-knit organization comprising three units: One being Yotopoulos himself, another being members of the Serifis family and friends and the third being the Xeros family and their friends. These three appear to have worked together conducting attacks and robberies, and also worked apart at times, with Yotopoulos losing and regaining control.

Police are now also close to arresting another of the gang's historical leaders, who was known by the code name «Sardanapalos.»

Yesterday's catch, Tselentis, 42, (also known as «Alekos» and «Tapeworm») was picked up at his house at Hellenikon near Athens's old airport. He is suspected of involvement in many attacks, including murders. Police believe Tselentis was recruited in about 1983 and quickly became both a hit man and an organizer of attacks.

«This is an individual who is stained to the bone with blood,» a senior officer said. He compared him to Dimitris Koufodinas, a senior November 17 operative who has been on the run since June 29. That was the day police netted their first November 17 detainee - when Savvas Xeros was injured by a bomb he was allegedly carrying in Piraeus, setting off a chain reaction of arrests. Testimony by other suspects and other evidence indicates that Tselentis was involved in the murder of publisher Nikos Momferatos in early 1985 and a number of other acts. Police traced Tselentis after another suspect, Christodoulos Xeros, mentioned his first name, Patroklos. As the name is not common, they were able to find a copy of his identity documents in their archives. They took a typewriter, computer disks, a printer and documents from his house.

Public Order Minister Michalis Chrysochoidis and Foreign Minister George Papandreou yesterday briefed the ambassadors of Greece's 14 EU partners and assured them that Greece had not only become an even safer country, but would also organize the most successful Olympic Games. Anti-terrorism squad chief Stelios Syros briefed the Turkish charges d'affaires. Two Turks were among November 17's 23 victims. Meanwhile, Turkish Foreign Minister Sukra Sunu Gurel claimed yesterday Greece was harboring Turkish militants, saying he would raise the issue with Papandreou.