In Brief
MAGISTRATE JUDGED
Siemens investigator Zagorianos set to be charged over probe Nikos Zagorianos, the magistrate who for months headed the investigation into the Siemens cash-for-contracts scandal could be charged with breach of duty over his failure to issue a European arrest warrant for the key suspect in the case, former Siemens Hellas CEO Michalis Christoforakos. Supreme Court deputy prosecutor Anastassis Kanellopoulos yesterday handed in the results of his probe to Zagorianos and recommended that the magistrate also be charged for not allowing defendants’ lawyers access to all the relevant court documents. The case will now be assigned to an investigating magistrate who will decide whether to bring charges against Zagorianos. TRIGGER-HAPPY ROBBERS Shots exchanged in Evia chase Two suspects who held up a branch of Eurobank in Aliveri on the island of Evia yesterday morning after threatening staff with Uzi submachine guns were arrested a few hours later following a massive police operation. The two men fled from the bank with 21,000 euros in cash but their getaway car was spotted by police, who gave chase. Other patrol cars and a police helicopter joined in the hunt for the two men. Dozens of shots were exchanged by the suspects and officers before the robbers were spotted in the yard of a hotel in Eretria. Special forces moved in to arrest both men, later identified as Albanian nationals. Cultures meet The Interior Ministry announced yesterday that it is organizing a special event dedicated to migrants on Friday at Koumoundourou Square in central Athens. The event’s slogan will be «Feels like home» and will showcase the cultures of various peoples through food, music and handicrafts that will be sold at a bazaar in the square. The event aims to foster Athenians’ awareness of other cultures while promoting the city’s multicultural makeup. Turkish provocation A formation of eight Turkish fighter jets violated Greek national air space in the Aegean yesterday morning when they flew at a low altitude over the Aegean island of Andros. According to Greek defense sources, the aircraft (four F-16s and four F-4s) flew over a military firing range on the island where a Greek air force exercise had been under way. According to the same sources, a telephone call was made via a hotline from Greece’s tactical air force headquarters in Larissa, central Greece, to its Turkish counterpart in Eskisehir, northwestern Turkey, and the Turkish jets subsequently withdrew. Farmers protest Farmers in northern Greece yesterday staged a blockade on the border with the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, preventing trucks carrying foreign produce from entering the country and demanding the immediate payment of subsidies for their sector. Media blackout The Athens Union of Journalists (ESIEA) yesterday called a 24-hour strike for Thursday, protesting recent redundancies at newspapers and proposed reforms to the country’s pension funds that it fears will be prejudicial to its members. The strike, due to begin at 6 a.m. on Thursday and to end at the same time the following day, means no newspapers will circulate on Friday.
