The former MEP Ioannis Lagos completed his apology before the Five-Member Court of Criminal Appeals, closing the cycle of apologies for the case of the Golden Dawn criminal organization.

The trial is now entering its final phase, as at the next meeting, on December 12, the court prosecutor Kyriaki Stefanatos is expected to be summoned. More than three years after the start of the appellate proceedings, the prosecutor’s office will give its position on the guilt or innocence of the accused in a case that has been described as unprecedented for the Greek context, as a political party is treated as a cloak for a criminal organization.

Yiannis Lagos, who has been sentenced to 13 years in prison as a member of the management team of Golden Dawn, categorically denied the accusations. He maintained that he was not physically present at any of the criminal acts attributed to Golden Dawn and disputed the indictment, noting that the case was “set up” to hurt the party.

At the beginning of his apology, he stated: “In my conscience I am not an apologist. I would feel that way if the court tried to bring out the truth.”. He repeated the allegation of political persecution, saying that he was turned into a “monster” through publications, while stressing that the court did not contribute to uncovering the truth.

Commenting on the attitude of the Justice, he argued that he has not been given a single day off from prison, while he has been entitled to it for two and a half years, characterizing his treatment as vindictive.

The president of the court asked the defendant about a telephone conversation he had shortly before the murder of Pavlos Fyssas with the head of the Local Organization of Nice. Lagos replied that the conversation was about a speech by the leader of Golden Dawn, Nikos Michaloliakos, in the area.

He stated that he did not know the perpetrator of the murder, Giorgos Roupakias, and described that he had only seen him at the offices in Nice, where he worked in the canteen.

For the attack on Egyptian fishermen, Lagos characterized it “one of the biggest hoaxes that ever happened”. When the president pointed out that the attack happened a few hours after his own speech, Lagos responded: “Those who did it were either stupid or they did it on purpose”excluding that they were members of the Golden Dawn.

When asked about “obedience to the Chief”, he replied that there was respect for Nikos Michaloliakos, without this meaning that there were no disagreements or different opinions.

Statement by Giorgos Roupakias

After Lagos’ apology, George Roupakias’ defense attorney filed a statement from his client, in which he expresses remorse and apologizes “for the untold pain it caused”. Roupakias, who has been sentenced at first instance to life and 14 years in prison for the murder of Pavlos Fyssas, did not appear in person in court.

In his statement, Roupakias states that “I am not a murderer, nor a fascist” and maintains that he did not know the persons who were at the scene of the crime. He insists that the crime was not premeditated and states that “he hit Pavlos Fyssa once with a knife that he stupidly brought with him”adding that he did not want to kill, but to escape.

Finally, Roupakias notes that “Apart from Fyssa’s family, no one was interested in what happened there. Instead, a dark political narrative was set up. I apologize to the family”.