Probe ordered into road rage case
Athens first instance prosecutor Eleni Raikou ordered an investigation into whether former deputy development minister Kimon Koulouris should face a string of charges after a road rage incident in the central Athens district of Kolonaki on Saturday.
Specifically, Raikou wants to determine whether the ex minister should be charged with resisting arrest, causing bodily harm and violating the highway code after he ran several red lights before allegedly driving his car at an officer.
The probe will also seek to determine whether officers of the motorcycle-riding force Dias, who questioned Koulouris, should face any charges.
Citizens’ Protection Minister Christos Papoutsis on Monday met with the four officers and defended them, noting that «all citizens are equal before the law.”
Earlier on Monday, a senior police unionist claimed that his superiors had intervened in order to quickly resolve a dispute between police and Koulouris on Saturday night.
?The supervisors tried to close the case quickly,? the vice president of the Attica union of police officers, Antonis Liakopoulos, told Skai on Monday. ?But why should my colleague go home from work with his leg in splints??
One officer was injured after Koulouris allegedly drove his car at him following a dispute with officers over whether he should go to the precinct to answer to charges of violating the highway code. It appears that the 71-year-old did not hit the officer on purpose but due to ?clumsy maneuvering? although an alcohol test showed that the former minister had not been drinking.
The injured officer has reportedly sued Koulouris after receiving advice from the union.
According to Liakopoulos, Koulouris had all his documents in his car when he was stopped for inspection ? contrary to his claims ? but had not wanted to be taken in as his license had expired. ?The era of ?do you know who I am?? is over,? the unionist remarked.
