The 20-year-old young man who was shot in the head by police during a vehicle pursuit in the city of Argos, in Greece’s Peloponnese region, died early on Sunday, four days after the incident in the early hours of Wednesday.
Questions surrounding the deadly confrontation remain unanswered, while the two police officers involved were ordered held in pre-trial detention following lengthy testimony before an investigating magistrate in Nafplio.
The 20-year-old had been hospitalized in the intensive care unit at KAT General Hospital in Athens while on a ventilator. It has been reported that the 20-year-old was unarmed when he was targeted by the police officers.
Footage from CCTV cameras recorded a total of 21 shooting sounds and the voice of one policeman head saying “the Turk is down! Call an ambulance!” Note that in police slang “Turk” is used for members of the Roma community. The victim was not a Roma.
The young man was on the autism spectrum and had officially confirmed disability of 89%. his mother told media adding that he had gone swimming.
The two officers had initially been charged with attempted homicide with possible intent committed in a calm state of mind, as well as violations of Greece’s weapons laws, in connection with the shots that fatally wounded the young driver. However, after the victim’s death, the charges against the officers will be amended to include homicide with possible intent.
During the forensic examination of the scene, authorities recovered 13 shell casings. According to tovima.com, police said the 20-year-old was carrying an air pistol, which was seized and has been sent to the Directorate of Criminal Investigations for examination. The pending ballistic analysis is expected to determine whether the officers’ shots were warning shots or direct fire.
“(…) Before using their service weapons, they should have anticipated that they could seriously injure or take the life — as unfortunately happened — of a person,” Greek Police spokeswoman Konstantina Dimoglidou told MEGA TV on Monday morning.
The authorities’ investigations are focused on the circumstances under which the police officers shot the 20-year-old and whether the use of weapons was justified since it seems that there was no threat against them.
The police officers continue to claim that they fired into the air to intimidate the man.
“We deny any possible intent. We shot to intimidate. We did not want to kill him or even injure him. It was a bad moment. We regret it,” the two police officers reportedly said in their statement. However, their claims did not convince the investigator and prosecutor and they were remanded in custody.
According to Greek Police spokeswoman, the police officers did not even know who they were chasing, as the car they were driving was not in the name of the victim but of a relative.
Investigation continues and the ballistic examination of the police’s weapons will ultimately show which shots were fired from each weapon.
The incident has triggered an outrage in parts of the society and in opposition parties.
Minister for Citizen Protection Michalis Xrysochoidis said on Monday that the “mission of police is to arrest murderers not to kill children.”
