Prosecutor blasts former minister in money-laundering trial summation
Public prosecutor Georgia Adeilini named former Defense Minister Akis Tsochatzopoulos as the recipient of millions of euros in kickbacks from defense contracts during her summation in a large-scale money-laundering trial on Wednesday.
A veteran politician and socialist PASOK co-founder, Tsochatzopoulos is facing charges for setting up a complex money-laundering network to cover the trail of millions of euros. He is standing trial along with another 18 defendants, including his spouse, Viki Stamati, and his daughter, Areti Tsochatzopoulou.
In her summation Adeilini argued that during his tenure as defense minister from 1996 to 2001 Tsochatzopoulos received bribes in exchange for signing submarine and Russian TOR-M1 missile deals.
The prosecutor noted that the ex-minister passed the kickbacks onto indebted Greeks, disregarding the cost of the deals and the fact that the Greek people had trusted him. She also referred to rampant graft and corruption in the country as “shameful.”
The court’s verdict is expected in early October.
