The trial in the second instance has been postponed to November 3, 2025 for the much-lauded case of the murder of 19-year-old Alkis Kampanos, who was a victim of blind fan violence, in February 2022, in the Harilaou area of ​​Thessaloniki.

The Mixed Jury Court of Appeal of Thessaloniki – by a majority – accepted two requests for postponement submitted by an equal number of defense attorneys for a total of 12 defendants, convicted in the first degree. Out of all the defendants held in various prisons in the country, eight were transferred today to the courts of Thessaloniki, while the rest chose, for various reasons, not to transfer them.

The hope that the Court of Appeal will vindicate the memory of 19-year-old Alkis, his father Aristidis Kampanos, expressed in his statements after the adjournment, for next November, of the appellate trial for the murder case of his son, with fan motives.

“The Calvary we are going through, we expected it to continue for a longer period of time,” said Mr. Kampanos, commenting on the postponement granted by the Mixed Court of Appeal of Thessaloniki, accepting relevant requests from the defense side. He characterized the last three years since the loss of his son as “very difficult”, pointing out that “essentially the convicted destroyed not only our own family but also theirs” and stressing that their parents should also sit in the dock “because they are complicit in the crime committed in Alki”.

Called to comment on the gathering – support held in the morning by friends and followers of the 12 convicted supporters of the PAOK team, Mr. Kampanos, who holds the position of Head of Awareness Against Sports Violence in the Region of Central Macedonia, noted: “Some minds don’t change. Support for what? In continuing to commit such crimes? We said we love football, PAOK, Aris, but not to the point of taking lives for our love. What love is this?’

Court of first instanceseven of them were sentenced to life imprisonment and in addition to multi-year sentences as accomplices in homicide with possible intent and the remaining five with temporary sentences as simple accomplices in the same act.

For most of them, however, an appeal was filed against the conviction by the head of the Thessaloniki Appeals Prosecutor’s Office, Nikos Kallides, asking for longer sentences to be imposed. Finding the decision to change the charge to manslaughter wrong, the senior prosecuting officer held that the defendants should be convicted of manslaughter as originally charged. In addition, for three of them he considered that they should not be convicted of complicity, but one of moral complicity in first-degree murder and the other two of second-degree complicity in the same first-degree murder. The appeal does not “touch” two of the defendants and practically only for them the principle of not worsening their position applies.

In addition to the murder of 19-year-old Alkis, the indictment includes the acts connected to the attack against his two friends during the same bloody episode.

From early on, friends – companions of the defendants had gathered outside the courts, while enhanced security measures were taken by the police.