Greek basketball scandal: Six arrested to appear at Evelpidon courts today – The evidence against them

The match-fixing case, which has now reached the investigation stage and has already led to six arrest warrants, involves extremely serious charges that are shaking Greek basketball to its foundations.

EOK president Vangelis Liolios and five other individuals involved in Greek basketball are expected to be transferred today, Thursday (22/11), shortly after 10 a.m., from GADA, where they are being held following their arrests yesterday, to the courts at the former Evelpidon Military Academy.

Under the standard procedure, the defendants are expected first to appear before the prosecutor responsible for the execution of arrest warrants and then before the 9th Investigating Magistrate, who has been assigned the case file, in order to give their statements.

Accompanied by their defence lawyers, they are expected to request and be granted additional time so that they can receive copies of the evidence contained in the case file and then give their statements in the following days, no later than next Monday (26/11).

The defendants are:

• Vangelis Liolios: President of the Hellenic Basketball Federation (EOK).
• Vaso Tsaroucha: International referee.
• Petros Papapetrou: Former referee who retired in the summer.
• Tasos Pilοidis: Former referee and member of the Central Refereeing Committee (KED).
• Ilias Koromilas: Former referee.
• Giorgos Mavraganis: Businessman.
• The offences for which they have been called to answer are bribery and acceptance of bribes, with violation of sports legislation constituting an aggravating circumstance.

As has already become known, the arrest warrants were issued following criminal proceedings brought against the six by the Athens Prosecutor’s Office, after an investigation conducted by the sports prosecutor.

The preliminary investigation concerned allegations of fixed basketball games ranging from youth and school championships all the way up to the A1 division. It focused mainly on the past five years, although earlier years were also investigated.

According to information, the investigation was extended to the period from 2016 to 2026 and covered approximately 50 basketball games, at least one of which appears to have taken place outside Greece.

According to reports, it all began in April 2026, when the prosecutorial authorities received a complaint from Maroussi BC concerning the role of the Hellenic Basketball Federation (EOK), and specifically its president, Vangelis Liolios. A further eight people subsequently gave testimony before the sports prosecutor, reporting similar incidents.

The evidence

According to information, three main pieces of evidence formed the basis of the case:

The witness statements, mainly of two individuals who voluntarily approached the prosecutorial authorities, assisted the investigation and, in this way, managed to avoid possible criminal liability of their own. A total of nine people have testified before the sports prosecutor, alleging criminal acts by those arrested. These two individuals, however, appear to have had first-hand experience, as they are said to have admitted that they had been bribed, while naming individuals and referring to specific sums of money.

Documents included in the case file and submitted to the prosecutorial authorities by the witnesses, particularly written messages which they claim to have exchanged with people involved in the case concerning the manner in which the bribery took place and the amounts involved.

The sum of €820,000 in cash, which was found during a search of the home of one of the accused referees. The exceptionally large amount, which appears to have been carefully hidden inside the residence, attracted particular attention, as it was not consistent with either the profession or the financial profile of the specific defendant.

At the same time, the investigating magistrate’s next steps could bring additional evidence to light, particularly from the Hellenic Police forensic laboratories, as electronic devices -including mobile phones, computers and other equipment- were reportedly seized during the searches of the defendants’ homes and may shed further light on the case.