At least one ballot box was stolen from a polling stations in the anarchists’ district of Exarchia in Athens and were allegedly set on fire. The unprecedented incidents took place on early Sunday evening short before the polling stations in Koleti and Arahovis streets were closed at 7 p.m.
According to media information, a group of 15 people raided the polling station in Koletis street, grabbed the ballot box, fired smoke flares against the policemen and fled.
The unknown perpetrators reportedly set the ballot box on fire at the Exarchia square.
Police launched an operation to capture the perpetrators.
At 8:30 the Interior Ministry confirmed the incident saying on a live presser that “four people entered the polling station 3 minutes before the closure.” They were armed with a sledgehammer and initially tried to destroy it. When they saw that this was impossible, they took the ballot box and fled.
According to state-run ERT TV, apart from the four perpetrators, another group of people were stand by at the entrance of the polling station.
The Interior Ministry announced that “elections in this specific polling station will take place again next Sunday (July 14) as the Elections Law dictates.
It turns out that the incident at the second polling station in Arahovis street no ballot box was stolen, but a group of people hurled stones at the police officers.
On Monday, an organization calling itself “Ballot Box Thieves Arsonists” claimed responsibility for the incident. In a statement posted on an anti-authoritarian website said it was a “warm welcome to Kyriakos Mitsaotakis and New Democracy.”
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