In Brief
HOOLIGAN BRAWL
Olympiakos board member allegedly involved in fan’s death is bailed A member of the governing board of Olympiakos soccer club was released on bail yesterday after being questioned in connection with the death of a Panathinaikos fan during a prearranged brawl between hooligans east of Athens in March. The unnamed man has been accused, along with four others, of involvement in the death of Michalis Filopoulos who was stabbed and beaten to death. The official denies any part in the incident. A magistrate has barred him from leaving Greece and ordered him to report to a police station twice a month. THESSALONIKI CLASH Arrest warrant issued for suspect over teenage stabbing incident A Thessaloniki magistrate yesterday issued a warrant for the arrest of a 20-year-old Albanian in connection with the killing of a Georgian youth near the city’s railway station last Sunday night. Two youths, a 17-year-old Georgian and an 18-year-old Albanian, were fatally stabbed during a brawl that broke out following an argument about a basketball game. Another six people arrested in connection with the incident have been released. MADELEINE SPOTTED? Search for girl extends to Crete Police on Crete have joined the search for a 4-year-old British girl who disappeared in Portugal two weeks ago, after a tourist claimed to have spotted her on the island, Agence France-Presse reported yesterday. Greek police were alerted by Interpol after a Swiss tourist on Crete reported seeing Madeleine McCann with a man aged around 40 at a hotel in Hersonissos, 25 kilometers east of Iraklion. There had been no sign of the girl by late yesterday but police said the search would continue. Boat found A Super Puma rescue helicopter located the Israeli-flagged sailing boat Araba off the Cycladic island of Kea shortly after the vessel issued a distress signal. Two Israeli men who had been aboard the vessel were unharmed, the Merchant Marine Ministry said. The pair had radioed for help after the 7-meter sailing boat sprung a leak around 4 nautical miles off Kea in winds as high as 7 on the Beaufort scale. The vessel was found aground on Kea. Australia trip Greece plans to honor the surviving Australian and New Zealand soldiers who fought in the Battle of Crete 66 years ago, Deputy Foreign Minister Theodoros Kassimis said in Sydney yesterday. Kassimis was speaking ahead of a visit to Australia on Monday by Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis. He will be the first Greek premier to visit Australia. Karamanlis will also visit Singapore, New Zealand and Vietnam during his nine-day trip. Electricity readings Homeowners should take their own electricity meter readings to double-check that the charges calculated by the Public Power Corporation (PPC) are correct, Deputy Development Minister Anastassios Nerantzis said yesterday. He said there was only about a 3 percent chance that the meter readings would be incorrect but highlighted the fact that PPC had now assigned this part of its operations to contract workers. Also, Nerantzis added that PPC conducts sample surveys of its own and heavily fines the meter readers it has hired if they are found to have made mistakes. ND firebomb An improvised explosive device went off outside a New Democracy party office in Kalamaria on the outskirts of Thessaloniki early yesterday, police said. The device, consisting of cooking gas canisters, detonated at the entrance to the building at 2.10 a.m. Nobody was injured but the office entrance was damaged. Toy withdrawn A children’s toy is being withdrawn from the Carrefour Marinopoulos supermarket chain because it could be dangerous for small children, the General Secretariat for Consumer Affairs said yesterday. The «travel bag with baby» is being removed from all stores because it contains small items that may be swallowed by children. Stolen cars Customs officials said that they have recovered 15 stolen luxury cars at the Kakavia border crossing with Albania. Officials did not say over what time period the cars had been seized but said that the vehicles included six Mercedes and two BMW models.
