Police avoid jail for assault
Eight policemen were yesterday given jail terms of between 15 and 39 months for their part in an assault just over two years ago on a Cypriot student in Thessaloniki but all the officers walked free from the court after appealing the verdict. Riot police used tear gas to disperse dozens of youths who gathered outside the court to protest the decision that saw three officers given three years in jail for grievous bodily harm and a fourth policeman get three years and three months as he was also found guilty of swearing at Avgoustinos Dimitriou, who was attacked on November 17, 2006. The three officers appealed the ruling and were released. The officers can also buy out their sentences for 5 euros per day. Another four officers, including a former local police chief, were given 15-month sentences, suspended for three years, for being complicit in the assault that left the student needing lengthy hospital treatment.
