Ex-minister’s daughter free
An appeals court yesterday ordered the release from prison of Areti Tsochatzopoulou, daughter of former Defense Minister Akis Tsochatzopoulos, who has been serving a 12-year sentence for her role in laundering millions of euros in kickbacks pocketed by her father during his tenure as defense minister. The court ruled that Tsochatzopoulou, who has been in Korydallos Prison since April 2012 when she was remanded in pretrial custody, should be freed because she turned over her properties to the state and due to the health problems of the youngest of her three children. She was ordered not to leave the country and to appear at a police precinct at regular intervals. The same court rejected an appeal for release by Viki Stamati, Tsochatzopoulos’s wife, who is also serving a 12-year prison term for money laundering.
Lavrentiadis trial.
Businessman Athinagoras Andreadakis, who was injured when a boobytrapped gift went off in his hands in June 2012, yesterday withdrew his allegations that another entrepreneur, Lavrentis Lavrentiadis, was responsible for the attack. Andreadakis made the claim on the first day of the trial in which Lavrentiadis and six others are facing charges of plotting to kill the businessman. Andreadakis also dropped his civil action against Lavrentiadis with which he was seeking financial compensation. The judge adjourned the trial until December 5. Lavrentiadis is currently awaiting trial over charges of running a criminal organization and money laundering in connection with alleged embezzlement at Proton Bank, where he was the main shareholder.
Debt arrest.
A 73-year-old man was arrested in central Athens yesterday morning in connection to debts to the state of 57 million euros. The man was a board member at a company that traded in mobile phones and accessories, which ran up the debt with tax authorities.
Anastasiades op.
Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades will have heart surgery in the United States on December 4, government spokesman Nicos Christodoulides said yesterday. Anastasiades, 68, is to fly to the US on November 29, Christodoulides said, adding that the president was expected back in Cyprus before Christmas.