The opposition accuses the mayor of Pyrgos Stathis Kanni of an attempted cover-up after replacing the lawyer who handled the waste case
About a week before the hearing of the much-lauded case concerning the “sinful” waste management, the virtual purchase of a baler and the provocative party of millions of euros of public money under the mayorship of Makis Paraskevopoulos, the current mayor of Pyrgos, Stathis Kannis, decided to remove the case from the lawyer Dimitris Kondylis without any justification, invoking vaguely his right to appoint whoever he wishes as a lawyer in matters of the municipality.
See also: The former mayor of Pyrgos is on trial for the garbage
The “wicked” action of the current mayor of Pyrgos, who was the president of the municipal council during the days of the accused M. Paraskevopoulos, received a formally legal character through the special meeting of the municipal body last Tuesday.
This move has caused an uproar and strong reactions among the representatives of the opposition, who publicly speak of a “cover-up operation” shortly before the trial in Patras, while legal circles and judicial sources characterize it as unprecedented and scandalous.
We remind that St. Kannis participated as a prosecution witness against the journalists Costas Vaxevani and Makis Nodaro after the indictment against them by the former mayor of Pyrgos, M. Paraskevopoulos, who is now on trial for a felony. In fact, during the hearing in an Athens court, he testified under oath and falsely that their reports about the labyrinthine corruption ring that had been set up in Pyrgos under the pretext of waste management were slanderous and false.
Panic about the trials
The acquittal of the two journalists also caused a judicial investigation, which with the help of the then secretary of the Pyrgos, lawyer Haris Antipas and also the lawyer Mr. Kondylis who handled the case, led to the resolution No. 53/2023 of the Council of Delinquents of Ilia , which refers on 8.3.2024 to the bench of the Three-Member Criminal Appeal Court of Patras with serious charges a total of twelve persons “beyond suspicion”.
These are current and former self-governing agents of the Municipality of Pyrgos, who – according to the indictment – are involved in the masterful combination of millions of euros under the guise of waste management a few years ago.
Members of the opposition in the Municipality of Pyrgos in their statements to the local press of Ilia and to Documento denounce the action of the current mayor and call it an indirect attempt to cover up in view of the trial.
“Shame”
Takis Antonakopoulos, doctor – head of the opposition in the Municipality of Pyrgos, points out:
“The reasons why Mr. Kannis and his close group ardently claimed the administration of the municipality are now confirmed. Their main concern is the outcome of the felony court cases involving protagonists, in view of the trial of the case. Apparently, the attitude of Mr. Kondylis may scare the fellow travelers of Mr. Kanni who are accused of causing financial damage to the municipality to the extent of a felony and that is why they made sure to replace him with another lawyer from Patras. Shame…”.
“Without reason”
The head of the DEKA faction in the Municipality of Pyrgos Dionysis Beltsos reports:
“Suddenly and without invoking the slightest justification, Mr. Kannis replaced this particular lawyer six years after assuming his duties and just five days before the court. Let us remind our fellow citizens that, on the one hand, according to the findings of the competent auditing authorities, the financial loss of our municipality amounts to several million euros, on the other hand, that the current mayor of Pyrgos was the president of the municipal council in the then municipal authority of the defendant today, Mr. Paraskevopoulos. Also, it should not escape our attention that Mr. Kondylis had assumed his duties successfully, as with his legal interventions he contributed to the indictment of several people involved for committing felonies.”
“Challenging Move”
For his part, the head of the People’s Rally in the Municipality of Pyrgos, Christos Athanasoulas, emphasizes:
“The success of Mr. Kondylis is presumed from the fact that several people have been indicted for committing felonies for cases related to the loss of millions of euros to the Municipality of Pyrgos during the period when Mr. Paraskevopoulos was mayor and Mr. Kannis, the president of the municipal council. The replacement of Mr. Kondylis is provocative, strange and refers to associations of a cover-up operation…”.
“DSI intervention”
The lawyer Haris Antipas, former mayor of the Municipality of Pyrgos, complains:
“Consciences and truth do not mix. And that’s enough. As attorney-at-law for hundreds of residents in “POTOKI”, as well as municipal councilors, the data I presented and the legal behavior of participants that I competently analyzed through complaints, appeals and memoranda contributed, through the appropriate handling of my colleague Dimitrios Kondylis, attorney-at-law of the Municipality of Pyrgos for the handling of said cases, in the referral before the Three-member Court of Appeal of felonies as alleged perpetrators of criminal acts, among others, self-governing bodies and employees of the Municipality of Pyrgos. The unwarranted crippling of the colleague who for six consecutive years has been handling the case efficiently and primarily with dedication to safeguarding the municipal claims requires the dynamic intervention of the Bar Association of Ilia”.
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