The threshold of the three investigators in Evelpidon is crossed today, Saturday, by another 30 of the 105 arrested for the events in New Philadelphia and for the murder of 29-year-old Michalis from Elefsina, who he was buried yesterday in an atmosphere of sorrows. The process will conclude tomorrow with the apology of the remaining 45, while it is recalled that yesterday, the first 30 who apologized were all sentenced to pre-trial detention.

Read what they claimed in their apologies.

DNA expiration

Within the day, it is expected that the genetic material from all those arrested will be taken in order to make an effort to identify – through the objects collected by the people of ELAS – the man who caused the fatal blow to the unfortunate AEK sports fan last Monday.

Hugs to the 30 who apologized on Friday

Yesterday, all thirty defendants were remanded in custody who apologized before an Investigator for the bloody incidents outside the AEK stadium in New Philadelphia in the early hours of Tuesday 8/8.

They are 28 Croats, one Greek and one Albanian.

The investigative process is carried out by three investigators.

Prosecutors and investigators held meetings on the criminal treatment of those completing their apologies, while the first phase of the investigative process finished after 22:00.

According to information, the Greek who was remanded in custody, in his testimony, denied any involvement in the case.

He claimed that he has an alibi, that he was at the scene with his fiancee, no incriminating evidence was found on him and the reason he was arrested is – as he stated – his heavy fan past.

A common thread among defendants who plead guilty to serious crimes is that they deny their involvement in them and attribute their arrest at the crime scene to random events.

All the defendants denied any connection with the murder of 29-year-old AEK fan Michalis Katsouri.

The Croat defendants denied possessing knives, while they seem to have claimed that they did not go to the scene with the intention of attacking AEK fans, but only to watch their team practice.

The 22-year-old defendant of Albanian origin claimed that he works as an electrician and that on Monday he was in the New Philadelphia area for work, while the 27-year-old Greek businessman said that he was in the area as he had an appointment with a person from whom he would buy a motorcycle. He also claimed that he was at the scene when he heard the commotion out of curiosity.

“We had gone to the OPAP ARENA Hagia Sofia to watch our team DINAMO ZAGREB train the day before the match against AEK, for which we had not secured tickets following the UEFA ban and unexpectedly found ourselves involved in widespread, violent incidents and deviations that took place for at least half an hour, without the timely intervention of the police authority“, states one of the defendants in his memorandum and adds.

“The police forces followed us and, frightened by the tension and the smoke bombs thrown by Greek sports fans, finally immobilized us and then arrested us.
I am not in a position to know because of the distance who really hit the unfortunate Michalis Katsouris with a sharp object, a knife, a heinous act, for which we are deeply sorry».

For his part, the 22-year-old originally from Albania, in whose possession a folding knife was found, reports among other things. “I am an electrician. On 7/8/2023, I was in the New Philadelphia area for work. I finished work late. I had made an appointment with my girlfriend at ISAP “PERISSOS” station to continue by train towards Piraeus, with the aim of reaching Galatsi. My girlfriend came for a week from Andros.

While I was waiting outside the station, I heard shouts, explosions and flares and went to see what was happening. I did not participate in the episodes”.

As for the knife found on him, the 22-year-old maintains that he had it on him for his work.

“The folding knife found on me is for my work. I use it in my work. I am not an organized fan of PAO, I am a simple sports fan. I go to the stadium, with my father and my brother, whenever I can find cheap tickets. I want my communications to be declassified, my cell phone checked and a dna sample taken to prove that I have nothing to do with what they are accusing me of».

The 27-year-old defendant of Greek nationality, who has a history of fan violence and accusations of a criminal organization, has testified among other things.

“I want to categorically state that I have nothing to do with what happened in the area of ​​new Philadelphia between the Croat criminals, who came to Greece, to kill and destroy property, and the thugs of organized AEK fans, who had a murderous rendezvous with Croat criminals and were similarly armed with knives, crowbars, wooden bats and other dangerous weapons, as can be seen from the videos, which were seized and entered into the file by ELAS».

And it continues: “On the day in question during the afternoon hours I visited the store in the area of ​​Nea Ionia Attica together with my fiancee and his strong partner in our new business venture, in order to supervise the facilities of the business in question and then I met with an acquaintance of mine in his house in the area of ​​New Ionia, to check the condition of the motorcycle that he had for sale and I had expressed an interest in buying its”

At another point in his testimony, 27 claims: “While we were talking, around 11 o’clock in the evening we heard loud flashes, firecrackers, flares and explosives from the area of ​​the AEK stadium, so out of curiosity I rushed to the spot on Alexandrou Papanastasiou Street and specifically to the point of origin of the deafening noise, which it’s only a 5 minute walk to find out what happened. When I arrived at the scene I saw and heard firecrackers exploding and screams and swearing from those involved, so I left fearing for my physical integrity, and headed to Perissos station moving along Papanastasiou street and at that moment it happened that the unknown persons, whose nationality I did not even know».

And he adds: “I was in the wider area walking and not running, without wearing a hood, helmet, gloves and above all, no knife and no knife from those confiscated, no wood, no crowbar and no sharp object was found in my possession. The only drawback is that I was in the wrong place at the wrong time!
My entire involvement in the case in question and my subsequent arrest is based, as appears from the police report, on the fact that I am an organized fan of Panathinaikos and on the arbitrary and false witness statement of a young police officer of the EL. AS. Action Team, X .F, who saw me walking in a street near the place where the incidents took place in Philadelphia.

The absolute argument of my innocence is that if I really participated in the incidents, with which it is proven from the above that I have nothing to do with, I would not have moved towards Papanastasiou Street, but towards Magnisias Street, i.e. in the completely opposite direction, where from safe I could hide safely without being disturbed.
Equally absolute proof of my innocence is my particular body type, since I am particularly tall and it would be easy to distinguish this body type of mine either by the police officers who carried out the study of the imported videos, or by eyewitnesses, or victims or patrons of the area , which would describe both my body type and facial features».

However, due to the gravity of the charges that have been attributed to the arrested, most of them it is estimated that they will be held temporarily.