By Ioanna Mandrou

After many months of prosecutorial investigations, which were the result of public complaints, which heavily occupied the media, for illegal practices applied by the managers of the “World Ark”, but also after complaints of sexual abuse, the Athens Prosecutor’s Office proceeded with criminal charges prosecutions for mistreatment of dozens of food items by the relevant staff.

For these illegal practices, with abusive behavior against minors, the main responsibility (prosecuted as a moral perpetrator) is attributed to Father Antonioan iconic figure who founded the structure, but who recently found himself in a lawsuit against him for a host of issues.
In particular, after a preliminary investigation by the Athens Prosecutor’s Office, father Antonio was prosecuted for indecency against minors, following complaints made against him by a 19-year-old today, who was previously an inmate of the structure, and another 15-year-old who continues to resides in the “Ark of the World”.

At the same time, criminal charges were brought against employees at Ark, seven in total, for a series of abusive behaviors against minors of the structure, for misdemeanor offenses such as bodily harm with various degrees of criminal risk, such as dangerous bodily harm, simple bodily harm, but also for the offense of exposing minors to danger. For all these crimes, a charge of moral complicity is attributed to father Antonios, while the investigation will continue in the structures of the Ark in its units in the province, as copies of the relevant case file will be sent to the Prosecutors’ Offices of Piraeus and Chios.

Father Antonios himself, who will then be confronted by the investigator, in the preliminary prosecution stage of the investigation, denied the accusations against him, mainly regarding the sexual abuses against the two minors who reported him, arguing that they are not true, while he mentioned in a memorandum the multi-year project of supporting minor children, which he himself started and which he subsequently developed. At the same time, regarding the accusation attributed to him, that he was aware of the abusive behavior of employees against minors, i.e. cruel and degrading punishments, etc., he also denied any knowledge of them.

However, in addition to the criminal investigation, an investigation was also ordered into the financial management of the structure, for the actions of Father Antonio in Kivoto, in which a temporary administration has now been appointed, with the Anti-Money Laundering Authority to forward, ahead of time, to the public prosecutor a conclusion for evaluation. Based on this finding, the competent prosecutor is still continuing his investigation.

However, for the prosecutions brought by the Prosecutor’s Office, those concerning the abusive behavior of employees of the structure towards inmates, because they are prosecuted as a misdemeanor, and are at risk of statute of limitations, legal proceedings will be initiated immediately to refer them to trial. The statute of limitations is a risk because the offenses were allegedly committed nearly five years ago, in 2018, but were only reported a few months ago.
However, the case of Kivotos and the revelations about the real conditions that prevailed in it, caused a sensation in public opinion, while now the justice is called to clarify the landscape and to confirm or not the allegations.