Owner of private Alpha TV Dimitris Kontominas was released on a mammoth bail of 5 million euro. Furthermore he has been prohibited from traveling abroad and he should check at a local police station twice a month. After a marathon meeting the members of judicial council decided to allow Kontominas to return home and imposed a bail unprecedented in Greece: full five million euro. The decision to release the businessman – suspect on the case of bad loans given by the Hellenic Postbank – was taken 2:1 with one judge believing he should be remanded custody.
Kontominas’ lawyers had submitted documents certifying the 75-year-old businessman was suffering from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and herniated diaphragm diseases which combined could cause cardiorespiratory problems. He was at constant risk of cardiac arrest as the businessman was sleeping with an oxygen mask, his lawyers said. Further, they focus on the personal assets of Kontominas in Greece – amounting several million euros – saying that they would provide enough guarantee that Kontominas is leading a company group with 1,400 employees.
Prosecutors findings on the bad loans given by the Hellenic Postbank accuse Kontominas for have been granted 110 million euro loans from the HPb without guarantees.
Dimitris Kontominas faces felony charges of fraud, breach of faith and money laundering. In his testimony on Tuesday, Kontominas is alleged to have insisted that all the loans received by his companies from TT had been issued on the basis of adequate guarantees. He also claimed to have put up company shares as collateral for the loans, sources said, noting however that the value of the shares fell due to the impact of the country’s financial crisis.
sources: zougla.gr, in.gr,