Those involved in several incidents of fan violence are expected to appear before the Prosecutor, in the courts of Evelpidon, in order to apologize for the heavy charges they face.
In particular, it is expected that accusations of moral complicity will be attributed to the fatal injury of the 31-year-old police officer, with police sources stating that 5 people are the ones who gave the order for the attack on MAT men that resulted in the fatal injury of Giorgos Lyggeridis.
The police officers dealing with violence in the sports arenas have succeeded in the secret investigation for four months to “bind” the charge of the criminal organization, through important findings mainly from the scene of the murder of the MAT police officer.
Lyggeridis murder: 64 arrests for the crime in Rentis – The dismantling of “Hooligan SA” has begun
“Yosif” or “Kontos”, a leading member of Thiras 7, the 27-year-old “OMLE”, manager of a well-known trapper and noted “leader” of a network of the western suburbs, a 36-year-old hooligan known by the nickname
“Romanian” and two 31-year-old men with the nicknames “Shark-Karcharias” and “Kokos” gave the attack orders to the “strike teams”, transmitted instructions through social media, and were physically present in Rentis and other episodes guiding them attackers against the police forces.
These five are alleged to be the moral perpetrators of the murder of the police officer Giorgos Lyggeridis and are among the 64 organized fans who were arrested yesterday, in the context of the operations of the Sub-Directorate for Combating Violence in Sports Fields, with the aim of … “dismantling” Hooligan S.A. .”, of the “anonymous company undertaking projects of violence” and a pool of recruitment for criminal groups. The total of 165 defendants are allegedly involved, in addition to the murder of the 31-year-old police officer, in at least 10 incidents of violence and attacks at sports meetings.
The 40-year-old “Iosif” or “Kontos”, a leading member of Gate 7 of Olympiakos, seems to have been the main organizer of the attacks against the police forces and the murder of 31-year-old Giorgos Lyggeridis. The attack on the “Melina Merkouri” Indoor Gym in Rentis on December 7, 2023 was planned “retaliation” for what had developed four days earlier in Volos with the police forces. “Let’s go and clean them up, finish them off” was the slogan that the “chief” used to say, referring to the policemen who would be in Rentis. “Iosif” or “Kontos” was arrested on Sunday in Ioannina and had 4 mobile phones and 5,000 euros on him, with the police speculating that he was trying to escape abroad.
The 27-year-old “OMLE”, manager of a well-known trapper and noted “leader” of the association of the western suburbs, accused in at least 4 court cases, is the one who transmitted the orders of the attack and brought reinforcements. He was one of the “key holders” of the warehouse from which he allegedly transported armaments and naval flares. In fact, it is said that he was the one who gave the fatal flare to the 18-year-old who confessed to hitting the unfortunate police officer.
A 36-year-old with the nickname “Romanos” and two 31-year-olds with the nicknames “Shark-Karcharias” and “Kokos” in turn gave the attack orders to the “strike teams”, transmitted instructions through social media, while having a physical presence in the Renti also in other episodes leading the attackers against the police forces. In April 2024, the “Romanian” was arrested with two other people after a fight between Olympiakos fans at the “G. Karaiskakis”. “Kokos”, who was arrested as a member of the Golden Dawn criminal organization in 2013, was also known to the authorities for an attack on a Pakistani barber shop in Metamorfosi in 2012 and for three more racist attacks that had occurred in the same year. He was in possession of one of the two pistols recovered during the arrest operations.
Twenty more arrested constituted the basic executive “core”, the traveling “army” for the occurrence of the incidents and attacks, while another 40 were the “collaborators” with extraordinary participations, in order to give numerical superiority to the plan of actions.
DNA was even found on the burnt clothes
DNA linking those arrested to last December’s murderous attack was even found on the clothes that some of the natural perpetrators had tried to burn in the toilets of the “Melina Merkouri” gym, where they found refuge.
Important evidence has emerged from the declassification of communications and suspect attachments, as well as from the depositions of organized supporters who have submitted requests to be included in the witness protection program. Clothing found in the context of the operations is said to be captured in the video material in possession of the authorities from inside the closed gym on the night of the attack. A total of 58 searches were carried out at homes and 15 at vehicles, during which two pistols, naval flares, knives, folding clubs, drugs, clothing, digital media and other items were seized.
An 18-year-old organized fan had already been arrested for the case in Rentis, who had confessed that he was the one who fired the naval flare, fatally hitting the unfortunate policeman. Traces of gunpowder were found on him, while fingerprints and genetic material of his 16-year-old brother were found on the launcher of the fatal flare. The minor is among those arrested during yesterday’s operations.
LIST OF 200 PEOPLE
Five organizations different groups of football
“Leading members of sports associations”. This is how the police describe most of the arrested people who were brought to the General Police Directorate of Attica yesterday. As can be seen from their mapping, they have participated in dozens of incidents and attacks, dating back even… 16 years. These individuals appear to recruit youths from fan associations and as roving “armies” engage in incidents at stadiums, attacks on police officers and other criminal activities. From there, the recruits are “screened” for their potential to commit more serious crimes and join Greek Mafia gangs.
According to police sources, the leaders, the organizers, the deputy leaders, the group leaders, the transmitters of the actions, the storekeepers of arms and the people who made up the strike groups have been arrested. These are persons included in the list of 200 people who allegedly supply five different criminal organizations of fans of the same number of football teams. Each of them consists of about 40 people.
“The file that was drawn up included testimonies, videos and other findings that demonstrated the existence of a criminal organization behind the attack, while confirming the association of sports violence with organized crime,” noted the head of the Hellenic Police, Lt. Gen. Dimitrios Mallios, in a statement.
FATHER OF GIORGOS LYGERIDES
“May the memory be justified of my child…”
“It was a difficult day emotionally, a lot can be done, there are laws. It’s a justification, a principle, my justification, of course, whatever happens, it’s not going to happen,” said Giorgos Lyggeridis’ father with a trembling voice and tears in his eyes, a few hours after the first arrests of the moral perpetrators of his son’s murder. Earlier, at an event of the Panhellenic Federation of Police Officers on sports violence, he said: “We are waiting for the Justice to do what it should. Today they started, from what we learned. My child’s memory must be vindicated.
The hero. My son. For all of Greece, for all of the Police. It’s my new family, all the kids in here are my son. I hugged them all one by one. They give me courage, they keep me upright.” The Minister of Citizen Protection, Michalis Chrysochoidis, was also present at the event and assured the family that they will not be alone and that “George symbolizes how abhorrent violence is in any society”.
Arsons, fights and “death date”
The list of cases allegedly involving the arrested includes incidents of threats and attacks against referees and journalists (PSAT) over a decade. Among them are the threats received by the referee Tasos Papapetrou, who was the referee in the Olympiacos Volou-Olympiakos match, in which the recent incidents were recorded, and the incendiary device in the shop of the referee Andreas Gamaris last November.
What happened at the “Melina Merkouri” Indoor Gym on December 7, 2023, according to relevant officers, was planned “retaliation” for what had developed four days earlier in Volos with the police forces. Actions related to the activity of the criminal organization have been recorded in Ioannina, Volos, Lamia, Malakasa, Ilion, New Philadelphia, Crete, Tripoli.
Source
