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Pavlos Fyssas killer makes first court appearance since March

Pavlos Fyssas killer makes first court appearance since March

The Golden Dawn member who killed anti-fascist rapper Pavlos Fyssas in 2013 made his first appearance in court on Friday since his release from pretrial detention in March, triggering an emotional outburst from the victim’s mother, Magda, and family.

Giorgos Roupakias is one of 68 members of the neo-Nazi Golden Dawn party facing charges of running a criminal organization, including extortion, attempted murder and the killing of Fyssas, which essentially kick-started legal proceedings.

He, along with 16 other co-defendants, entered the court room to jeers from Magda Fyssa and family members, who called them “murderers” and “scum.”

The much publicized trial began more than a year ago but has been dogged by repeated delays and was suspended in January due a lawyers’ strike, only to resume in May.

All those charged were released from custody after completing a maximum of 18 months in pretrial detention and are now under house arrest.

Most had opted not to appear in court during the trial, prompting the prosecutor to call on all 17 defendants involved in the murder of Fyssas to be present in the courtroom in response to a request by the victim’s family.

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