In a pivotal ruling, the Athens Single-Member Misdemeanor Court has found guilty the former protected witnesses in the Novartis case, Filistor Destempasidis and Maria Marangeli, known under the pseudonyms “Maximos Sarafis” and “Aikaterini Kelesi.”
Destempasidis received 25 months in prison, while Marangeli was sentenced to 33 months, both for false accusations against prominent political figures.
Case Background
The allegations date back to 2016–2017, when the two witnesses claimed before anti-corruption prosecutor Eleni Touloupaki that ten senior politicians were bribed by Novartis through its then-executive in Greece, Konstantinos Frouzis.
The politicians implicated included:
- Former Prime Ministers Antonis Samaras and Panagiotis Pikrammenos
- Former Ministers Giannis Stournaras, Dimitris Avramopoulos, Adonis Georgiadis, Evangelos Venizelos, Andreas Lykourentzos, Marios Salmas, Andreas Loverdos, and Giorgos Koutroumanis
The accusations, relating to bribery, passive corruption, and breach of trust, were never proven:
- Nine of the ten case files were archived.
- Andreas Loverdos was fully acquitted.
This verdict marks a turning point, closing an eight-year chapter that deeply impacted Greece’s political and institutional landscape.
Statement by Adonis Georgiadis
Speaking from Copenhagen, where he is attending the Council of the European Union, Adonis Georgiadis hailed the ruling as a “day of vindication” and criticized SYRIZA and Alexis Tsipras.
“Today is a day of vindication for all of us whom the SYRIZA government and Mr. Tsipras tried to destroy with lies to win the elections. The people who were then presented as ‘heroes’ are guilty, liars, and slanderers. Will anyone apologize? I highly doubt it. The Greek justice system has spoken, at least regarding the criminal aspect, and I will immediately file a lawsuit for damages against both. Lies and slander must have consequences so that they will never have imitators.”
Georgiadis emphasized the personal and societal impact:
“The Greek justice system’s decision condemning the two false witnesses of the Novartis conspiracy finds me in Copenhagen at the EU Council. I am grateful that justice condemned these individuals, who for political and economic reasons tried with lies to destroy our lives, especially mine. Honour and respect for others is a core part of dignity. These people, struck by justice, attempted to harm me, us, and Greek democracy.”
“I never doubted that justice would prevail, because in the end, truth always wins and light always shines. Mr. Tsipras once said in Parliament that the Greek justice system would decide if these two were trustworthy. Today, the Greek justice system has ruled: Ms. Marangeli and Mr. Destempasidis are guilty, false witnesses, and liars.”
With this statement, Adonis Georgiadis highlighted the closure of a turbulent political chapter, stressing that “slander and lies carry consequences.”
Source: pagenews.gr