For January 20, 2025, the trial of the two fishermen accused of the murder of the former minister Sifis Valyrakis in the sea area of ​​Eretria in January 2021 was postponed by the Mixed Jury Court.

The adjournment, the second given in the trial of the case, was given due to the abstention of the lawyers.

Present in court were the wife and children, as well as the brother of the former minister, who through their lawyers repeated the statement of representation of the Defendant.

The relatives of the victim asked the court to stop and not postpone the trial.

Then they asked for a shorter trial to be given during the adjournment, since as one of their advocates stated, Zoe Konstantopoulou on 1/24/2025 it will be 4 years since the murder “and the specific trial should have been determined within a shorter time”.

The advocate referred to a “many times problematic and reprehensible unprecedented release of the two defendants”, for whom she emphasized that they “enjoy scandalous treatment in Chalkida”.

There was tension in the room between relatives of the two accused and lawyers representing the family of the former minister.

According to the evidence of the case, there was an argument between Sifi Valyraki who had gone out with his spearfishing boat and the two fishermen who were in their fishing boat. The incident allegedly escalated on the part of the defendants who, according to the judicial authorities, acted with joint action aimed at neutralizing the victim.

“You approached Iosif Valyrakis, who was moving with his boat “MINA” and, after obstructing the course by making dangerous maneuvers with your fishing boat around his inflatable boat, you argued with him and then, using a wooden pole, you hit the upper part of his body at least 2-3 times, as a result of which he fell involuntarily into the sea”, it is stated in the case file in which it is also emphasized about the two fishermen that “not wanting to cover up their act, as soon as they realized that Iosif Valyrakis fell into the sea hitting the propeller of the boats in motion, they moved away… from the scene, leaving him helpless and without providing any information, although they were well aware that the victim was being sought by the port authorities, thus preventing any timely rescue action”.