In a unanimous decision Friday a Special Court found former SYRIZA minister Nikos Pappas guilty of dereliction of duty over the handling of a 2016 television license tender. Guilty was found also businessman Christos Kalogritsas for the crime of moral turpitude in the breach of duty of Pappas.
The Special Court imposed two years in prison with a three-year suspension, on SYRIZA MP Nikos Pappa, while Kalogritsas was fined 5,000 euros.
Both crimes are misdemeanors.
The prosecutor of the Special Court, Dimitris Asprogerakas, requested that the minutes be sent to the prosecutor with the testimony of Kalogritsa’s secretary, Ethalia Diamantis, who had testified that “files and bags were leaving Kalogritsa’s office for the SYRIZA party.”
Earlier, the prosecutor’s proposal was to impose a prison sentence of one year for Nikos Pappas and six months for Christos Kalogritsas.
Pappas was unanimously found guilty for his manipulations in the tender process for television licenses. Businessman Christos Kalogritsas, who was tried as an accomplice of the former minister on the charge of dereliction of duty, was unanimously found guilty.
Pappas served as minister of digital policy, telecommunications and media from November 2016 to July 2019.
Christos Kalogritsas is a businessman who took part in the TV license auction, but ended up with no license.
According to accusations, Pappas was trying to set up a SYRIZA-friendly TV station, while the left-wing party was in the government.
It should be recalled in the trial that had a clear political motivation, 10 days ago, the prosecutor proposed the acquittal of Pappas. After the proposal she fell ill. The district attorney after the guilty verdict recommended a one-year prison sentence. Finally the Special Court sentenced him to two years in prison, the upper limit for a misdemeanor.
Pappas: I don’t feel guilty
Through his lawyers, the SYRIZA MP stated earlier that he will not request mitigation because he does not feel guilty of a breach of duty, but on the contrary he firmly believe that he did his duty in full for the benefit of the Greek State and the freedom of information of the citizens, daily ethnos.gr reported.
One of his lawyers told media that Pappas should appeal to the European Court of Human Rights “because when politics enters the court then Justice exits.”
Through the TV licenses auctions, an unprecedented in Greece, over 2 million euros landed in the state revenues.
