Thanasis Liggeridis became a man of no concern during yesterday’s hearing on the murder of his son Giorgos, creating a climate of tension within the courtroom, forcing the presiding judge to move for an early closure.
The outburst by the father of the slain policeman was prompted by the laughter of defendants and their counsel during the examination of a police witness, when a defence lawyer called the presiding judge’s intervention in response to the witness an “aid to the public.”
“It’s nothing but a joke. Don’t fucking laugh. You can put yourself in my shoes, you can’t. Laugh at the animals. You don’t understand. You can’t put yourself in my shoes. Stop laughing… You’re all becoming academics in here”, Th. Lygerides.
In fact, tempers flared even more when a defence lawyer told him: “We are not trying your case, we are not trying you.” “Who are you trying? You are trying me. We’re trying to prove that the donkey doesn’t fly. Well, no, it doesn’t fly! We are trying the mutts, the murderers”, Thanasis Liggeridis retorted, literally beside himself, moving to the defense side.
Then police officers led him out of the courtroom on the president’s orders, and on his way out, the father of the slain police officer kicked and punched whatever objects he found in front of him.
All the defence lawyers stood up and approached the bench asking the chairman to protect them because, they said, they were doing their job and could not be called names and called animals, but showing a lack of sensitivity – at least – to a father who has lost his child and experiences the same drama at every sitting. A sensitivity and humanity that was emphatically shown by the president of the court.
The dialogue is illustrative:
– Defence Counsel: We ask for the protection of the court.
– President:Sue him.
– S.Y.:Disturbing a court session is an offence in itself and you must do the lawful thing.
– P.:Go and get him. Well, that’s the end of the session, adjourned for tomorrow, settle down.
“Let’s go, let’s go, let’s go, let’s go”
Preceded by testimony of a single police officer witness, who seemed to know quite a bit about how the riots in Renti had been organized and the role of some of them, as when he brought several of the Olympiacos fans to security, some of them told him, spontaneously as he claimed, “how the riots happened.”
“Someone, after the end of the first set, they told me that he gave them the signal ‘let’s go, let’s go, let’s go, let’s go, let’s go’. I was told that everyone came out and someone supplied them with materials to attack,” the witness added.
– Chairman: Why did they come out? Were you told?
– Witness:I was not told, but the supporters are acting as a mob, they all go together on cue because they are young in age and they are being led.
– P.: Did they benefit from coming out?
– M.: Benefit, no. I’m just also today in the moxie.
– P.:If someone didn’t come out, would there have been consequences?
– M.:Would you receive negative comments from others? you are cowards, they would say… you are not brave.
– Prosecutor: Do you recall anyone telling you about any preparation before the incidents started?
– Witness:I was told that there were preparatory acts mainly on how to transport the explosives. Most of them, I was told, were transported from Karaiskaki. The ammunition was outside, hidden in the bushes, and someone was distributing it to them from there.
Somehow, the hearing is proceeding with obstacles, since the testimonies of two police officers were also cancelled yesterday, as it was found that there was a procedural problem because they had been involved in pre-trial proceedings.
The witnesses came to court, but following an objection by defence lawyers through which they sought their exclusion, the court, on a prosecution motion, eventually excluded them. Some police officers, also witnesses, who were either present at the murder of George Liggeridis or knew in one way or another about the incidents, are difficult to find and subpoenaed to testify because they have been transferred to other cities.
The trial will continue today with testimony from prosecution witnesses.
