ATHENS – Five individuals were released subject conditions and one person remanded in custody on July 3, the first day of questioning of members of a Thessaloniki sports club criminal group tied attacks on fans of rival teams and drug trafficking.
A total of 20 people were detained following an operation by the Northern Greece Sub-Directorate for Combating Organized Crime. Of the 20, 15 are allegedly members of the criminal gang, while the case file names 51 people. A 30-year-old who is abroad is being sought as the gang leader, while a 23-year-old is being prosecuted over the murder of a 20-year-old male, Kleomenis, in March who died of knife wounds after an attack in the Kalamaria suburb of Thessaloniki.
The gang members are accused of planning and carrying out organized attacks against rival team fans, videotaping them and posting them on social media platforms as a show of power. Four serious cases have been investigated by police so far, while the group is allegedly involved in another 46 incidents of sports violence, according to digital evidence, that were never reported.
All those who testified on July 3 denied the charges. Conditions imposed on the five released from custody included, in some cases, a ban on attending their club’s games. The sixth man, 35, is charged with drug trafficking, possession of arms, and aiding and abetting the perpetrator of the attack that led to Kleomenis’ death.
Preliminary testimonies will continue on July 4.
Material from ANA-MPA was used in this report.
