EDITOR’S NOTE (Nick Stamatakis). I have a question for the Parade Committee and all those IDIOTS who supported making Vangelis Marinakis a “Grand Marshall” while he was under criminal investigation for racketeering: What would you do if the decision of the Judicial Council to send Marinakis to trial was announced last week, a few days before the Parade? Would you proceed to “honor” him? Would you disgrace, damage, and discredit the Greek-American community to the worst possible level? Shame on you!! The truth is the damage is done, even if the announcement was made after the Parade… I am waiting for you to apologize in public!! No amount of money Marinakis donated (through Tsunis) was ever enough to repay the damage you did to this community!!
This story has the potential to create seismic changes and reveal multiple political and financial interests in Greece and the Greek-American community. The revelations and repercussions will be enormous, as some among us have invested their whole lives and careers in supporting the Mitsotakis Family, and now they are trying to balance Marinakis and Mitsotakis. Why did Marinakis, who was a close supporter of Mitsotakis and was serving for years as the “cashier” of the Mitsotakis “Family” broke away from the alliance? Many suggest that Vangelis Marinakis’ cellphone was among those wiretapped by Mitsotakis, using Israeli software and intelligence agencies!! Stay tuned!
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Lygeridis Murder: Marinakis Furious with Mitsotakis – Olympiacos FC Members Are Referred to Trial
The Council of Misdemeanor Courts unanimously decided to order the referral to trial for misdemeanor charges against members of the management of Olympiacos FC , for the case of financing and supporting a criminal organization , which is linked to the murder of 31-year-old police officer Giorgos Lygeridis in Rentis.
Specifically, the referral concerns: Vangelis Marinakis , Yiannis Moralis , Kostas Karapapas , Michalis Kountouris and Dimitris Agrafiotis .
According to the decision of the Judicial Council , which accepted the prosecutor ‘s referral proposal , 142 defendants will be put on trial as members of a criminal organization with serious felonies related to the team’s organized activities, as well as the members of the Olympiacos FC administration who are accused of supporting -financing a criminal organization and inciting sports violence.
Among the main defendants is the leadership group of Gate 7 , the largest club of organized fans of Piraeus.
As reported by APE-MPE, the decree acquits 9 defendants, including the defendant as the physical perpetrator of the murder of the police officer, due to pending litigation as his trial is ongoing in Piraeus.
With regard to the management of the PAE , the Judicial Council accepts that the defendants: ” From 18-11-2019 to 22-4-24, together with more acts that constitute a continuation of the same crime, they provided all kinds of assets and all kinds of financial instruments, knowing that in this way they were facilitating or assisting the commission of criminal activities of a criminal organization that sought to commit more felonies and misdemeanors .”
According to the indictment , the five members of the Administration ” incited others to commit felonies ,” specifically by citing a statement by the FC a few days before the murder of Lygeridis regarding incidents that had occurred after the Volos-Olympiakos match.
The court accepts that the five defendants ” ..acting jointly, acting publicly and via the internet, provoked and incited others to commit felonies and misdemeanors, thereby endangering public order, while their actions resulted in the commission of crimes and incited citizens to violence among themselves, resulting in a disturbance of the public peace . Their act was committed on the occasion of a sporting event, after its end and far from the place intended for this event… “.
Harsh reaction from Vangelis Marinakis
The strongman of Olympiacos FC, after the announcement of his referral, issued a very harsh statement in which he launched a fierce attack on Kyriakos Mitsotakis and his Government , emphasizing that he is ” under a state of panic ” and that ” the scandalously benefited and dependent on the Mitsotakis system media crutches are attempting to blackmail me and hold me hostage , once again using Justice as an instrument .”
The shipowner also spoke of a ” coordinated effort to silence ” and assessed that ” what they really seek is to harm Freedom of the Press, the independence of the media and ultimately Democracy itself .”
Mr. Marinakis raised the… banner of resistance, emphasizing in another part of his statement: “ I am walking a different path from the government’s mouthpieces and I will insist on walking on it regardless of the cost. … I fully understand how much my choice bothers a prime minister and a government that, feeling that they are losing power and popular legitimacy , are sliding into a situation that is more and more reminiscent of a totalitarian regime .”
In conclusion, he sent a message of victory : ” I am not afraid, I am not blackmailed , I am not negotiating, I am not retreating, I am not surrendering . The truth will shine again. Democracy will prevail . In the end, we will be (as always) victorious .”
- The announcement of Vangelis Marinakis:
“Under the regime of panic, the Prime Minister, together with the scandalously benefited and dependent media crutches of the Mitsotakis system, are attempting to blackmail me and hold me hostage, once again instrumentalizing Justice.”
This is a coordinated effort to silence me, but it is hopeless. This is not, after all, the first time that something like this has been attempted. Political and economic interests have tried the same unsuccessfully in the past through fabricated cases and accusations that fell with a bang. The evidence is overwhelming and shows that the first victim in this case is Justice itself and its institutions.
The obvious target is me and Olympiacos. But what they really seek is to harm Freedom of the Press, the independence of the media and ultimately Democracy itself. Principles that are non-negotiable for the media of the Athens Stock Exchange-listed Alter Ego Media.
Criticism and control of power, the primary role of the press, the revelations of scandals and corruption prevalent in the leadership of the current government, obviously cannot be tolerated and are not forgiven by Maximos.
I am walking a different path from the government’s mouthpieces and I will insist on walking it regardless of the price. I choose to follow the words of Nikos Kazantzakis: “Tell the truth and let it be what it wants! Never admit to lying. Whoever lies is a slave. A free man always tells the truth.”
I fully understand how much my choice bothers a prime minister and a government that, feeling that they are losing power and popular legitimacy, are sliding into a situation that is – increasingly – reminiscent of a totalitarian regime.
I will not be an accomplice. I will remain opposed to the government practices that led the country to the last place among the EU states, in the World Press Freedom Index, and shook the trust of the Greek people in the institution of Justice. It is not by chance that within society the perception prevails that the government circumvented the independence of Justice in a series of cases, from the wiretapping, to the Tempi crime, in the latter without a trace of respect for the victims and their families. And all this is happening in a country that is in the penultimate place in the European Union, in terms of GDP per capita.
The message I send is one and clear: I am not afraid, I am not blackmailed, I am not negotiating, I am not retreating, I am not surrendering. The truth will shine again. Democracy will prevail. In the end, we will be (as always) victorious . ”
Rewind and… déjà vu!
We recall that in 2017 , claiming that there was a conspiracy against him , Vangelis Marinakis had launched an attack against the Government of Alexis Tsipras with the following announcement, which is quite reminiscent of Thursday’s announcement (3/4/2025):
“The limits of patience have been exhausted. The dimensions of the conspiracy against me, methodically and cynically brutally, are magnified daily by what is being revealed to the public.”
The factors and the cheapness of their methods are revealed. The smallness that characterizes them and the purpose they serve.
I have never sought the favor of government or other actors for any reason. I operate internationally in the Shipping sector and have never been associated with project assignments covered by public investments, nor have I benefited from the concession of any wealth-producing source of the country.
The conspiracy against me was systematically orchestrated to be publicly exploited at the right time for the purpose of blackmailing and sidelining me, in order to subvert the sensitive space of the Press and Information.
One of the main organizers is the Minister of National Defense. A willing instrument is a sworn port officer who abuses his power, and supporters are the usual suspects of journalistic “yellow vests” and all those others who embrace slander as a way of life.
I assure them that I am not being blackmailed, as I do not blackmail. I am not being threatened, as I do not threaten anyone. I am claiming within the framework of the established rules and I am not demanding anything.
With this clarity, I resorted, as I should, by submitting a complaint to the Prosecutor of the Supreme Court, to determine the responsibility of each of the conspirators. This is my answer.”
