Terrorism witness in trouble
Defense lawyers for the six people on trial for alleged participation in bomb attacks by the Revolutionary Popular Struggle (ELA) left-wing terrorist group yesterday called for a prosecution witness to be charged with perjury after the man’s testimony was contradicted by counterterrorism officials. The second ELA trial – four of the present defendants were convicted of group membership last year – started on February 7. In testimony last week, prosecution witness Andreas Koronaios claimed he had recognized defendant Yiannis Serifis, a 67-year-old trade unionist cleared of November 17 membership in 2003, as having been involved in a 1994 Athens bomb attack on a riot police bus. Earlier, however, he had provided conflicting evidence to counterterrorist police, who testified to that effect during the ongoing trial. Koronaios yesterday insisted he had seen Serifis, when asked by a judge which of his testimonies was true. Prosecutor Miltiadis Andriotellis said he would determine at the end of the trial whether there were grounds to charge Koronaios.
