Siemens case held up by lack of experts and office supplies
Lack of resources and infrastructure are holding back the prosecutors’ investigation in the Siemens cash-for-contracts scandal which has languished for more than eight months, Kathimerini understands.
One of the main stumbling blocks has reportedly been the lack of funds to translate the indictments against senior officials at the firm’s German headquarters. After failing to find a German-speaking legal expert at the Foreign Ministry, authorities hired a retired lawyer who is tasked with translating the documents by the end of the Easter break.
Financial woes mean that Justice Ministry staff have to put up with a range of daily shortcomings too, such as lack of ink and paper.
Another problem is the absence of experts to help with specialized cases. But a recent pledge by Justice Minister Antonis Roupakiotis to set up a 250-strong body of experts to help judicial authorities has raised hopes that the backlog of pending cases will be reduced.
