Argos mayor calls pre-trial detention of police officers over 20-year-old’s killing “unnecessary”

The post made by the mayor of Argos-Mycenae and member of New Democracy’s Political Committee, Ioannis Maltezos, regarding the killing of 20-year-old Thodoris by officers of the OPKE police unit has prompted strong and justified reactions. In an unacceptable public statement, the mayor claimed that the pre-trial detention of the two officers was linked to the “extensive publicity” surrounding the case, which, he said, “weighed on the judges’ decision.”

As he wrote on Facebook:

“The decision to remand the two police officers in custody gives us serious cause for concern. Under the law, pre-trial detention is neither an advance punishment nor a means of satisfying public opinion. It is an extreme restrictive measure applied when a defendant is considered a flight risk or likely to commit further offences. In this case, we are talking about two family men, two officers with more than 20 years of honourable frontline service, without a single stain on their records.”

He then went on, cynically referring to “tension in the field”:

“There was, of course, no previous history involving the victim, nor was there any intent. There was a moment of extreme tension in the field. Morally and legally, their pre-trial detention appears unnecessary.”

Maltezos did not hesitate to refer to the mother who lost her son, who was on the autism spectrum, writing in an ableist tone:

“We heard the deceased’s mother refer to her child’s serious behavioural problems and particular condition. It goes without saying that a young person lost his life, and this is a tragic event that cannot be relativised. The question, however, is unavoidable: When you know that a young person faces such problems, how do you allow him to drive around the city streets, driving dangerously and placing the lives of innocent citizens at immediate risk? What did you do to prevent such an incident? How is society protected in such circumstances? If that vehicle had struck and killed a child on the streets of Argos that day, a possibility that was entirely foreseeable based on his behaviour, what would we be saying today?”

The above, of course, has nothing to do with the fact that the unarmed victim was repeatedly shot by uniformed officers who were not acting in lawful self-defence.

Finally, the mayor did not fail to express his support for the officers who fired 21 bullets at the 20-year-old. He expressed:

“My absolute and sincere support for the two police officers and their families, who are going through an extremely difficult ordeal. We trust the Greek justice system and believe that, as the case proceeds, legal correctness and calm judgment will prevail, away from shouting and ulterior motives.”

In a statement, the New Left party said that “the post by the mayor of Argos-Mycenae and member of New Democracy’s Political Committee, Ioannis Maltezos, regarding the killing of the 20-year-old is a monument to shame and insensitivity.”

New Left accused him of shifting responsibility and attempting to portray the victim as “a threat from which the local community should have been protected.”

The party also recalled that Citizen Protection Minister Michalis Chrysochoidis had stated that “the officers in question exceeded the limits, created an enormous problem and a child lost his life.”

“New Democracy must answer whether it agrees with the statements made by a member of its Political Committee. If not, we call on it to immediately expel the mayor of Argos-Mycenae,” New Left said.

It should be noted that former Argos-Mycenae mayor Dimitris Kamposos also sided with the police officers.

“Hands off the police officers. The police exist to protect citizens and pursue lawbreakers,” he said.

Finally, a brain MRI scan of the 20-year-old was also made public, showing the bullet lodged in his skull.

“From the image provided by the scan, it does not appear that the bullet was the result of a ricochet, because it is intact. It does not appear to be a fragment. It can reasonably and directly be concluded that it was a direct shot,” said Maria Sfetsou, the lawyer representing the 20-year-old’s mother.

“The rules of engagement did not even permit the police officers to open fire. We are talking about a person who was fleeing,” she added.

Sfetsou said that the charge is expected to be upgraded to homicide with possible intent.

“He had health problems, but they did not prevent him from leading a functional everyday life. He had a driving licence and had never displayed violent behaviour,” the lawyer also said.

The 20-year-old, who had been declared brain-dead and was being treated in critical condition while intubated in the Intensive Care Unit of KAT Hospital, died late on Saturday night, July 12.

The young man was on the autism spectrum and had a certified disability rating of 89%. The officers claim that they fired “warning shots.”

A march against police violence will take place on Wednesday at 7:00 p.m. at Propylaea.