A 27-year-old anarchist was arrested yesterday and accused of participating in an attempted arson attack on offices newspaper “Real news” last July on Kifisias Avenue. He was arrested during an operation that took place early in the morning in an apartment in Refugees of Alexander Avenuewhere he lived recently.

The GUGB policemen who led the operation also delivered his partner, who was later released. Until late at night, the young man was not brought to the prosecutor and was kept in GADA. The information indicated that a criminal case had been opened against him for participation in a criminal organization, explosions, possession of explosives, as well as arson, with the participation of his lawyer Annie Paparousou, but had not had time – until the time of this writing – to meet with its director and receive accurate information about the content of the case file.

According to the official police version, formulated from the lips of the first persons of the Ministry of Citizens’ Protection, the identification of the 27-year-old occurred after processing video from CCTV cameras and identifying him by witnesses. Other sources of information reported that the security forces may have a fingerprint (dactyloscopic or genetic) of a 27-year-old teenager, by which they came to his identification.

Police were investigating any possible identifications in the arson of New Democracy offices in Pefki in April and cars in Pedion tou Areos in the early hours of 16 November.

According to police sources, the 27-year-old arrested was identified by analyzing video footage from surveillance cameras and witnesses.

An electronic computer and two mobile phones were confiscated from the refugees’ apartment, which were sent for a digital search at the Criminal Investigation Department. The car that the 27-year-old used for his travels and parked around the perimeter of the refugee zone was also sent to DEE. When trying to transport I.Kh. anti-authoritarian anarchists climbed onto the roofs of apartment buildings, throwing objects at the police.

78 arrests, police officers injured

After lunch, another raid on the residential complex followed, which ended late at night. Police officers from counter-terrorism units, EKAM, as well as units of the Armed Forces of Ukraine participated.

Authorities proceeded to arrest 78 people. According to EL.AS, the persons in question climbed onto the roof of the building and threw a number of objects (stones, building materials, etc.) at the police officers who were working at the scene.

During the operation, seven police officers were injured, two of them seriously.

A criminal case was initiated against 78 arrested persons on violent acts against officials and judicial persons, violation of public order, infliction of bodily harm jointly, infliction of grievous bodily harm by complicity and attempted damage to foreign property, as well as violation of laws on weapons, signal rockets and sparklers.

At the same time, the Union of Foreign Press Correspondents published a note of protest over the arrest of photojournalist Nikos Pilou during the operation. “The Union of Foreign Press Correspondents unreservedly condemns the indictment and detention for more than four hours of our colleague and member of our Union, Nikos Pylos. The photojournalist was in the “Refugees” area on Alexandra Avenue for a report when a police operation was carried out and he was taken, although he revealed his identity, ”it says, in particular, in it.

“An operation has been carried out to detain a person involved in cases of arson,” the Greek army headquarters said in a statement released yesterday afternoon. for the arrest of a 27-year-old man. A few hours earlier, the matter had been made public through a social media profile run by the Minister for Citizens’ Protection, Takis Theodorikakos. “Another criminal act has been uncovered (…) we are proceeding effectively. To bring to justice the perpetrators of every criminal act,” he wrote.

It should be reminded that the arson of the building, which houses the editorial office of the weekly, occurred early in the morning on July 13. The attackers placed a device on the stairs of the building, consisting of gas cylinders and a cylinder of flammable liquid. The blaze started a fire that damaged the newspaper’s offices, but mostly the 2nd floor of the building where the offices of a private company are located. A group called the Thousand Night Suns claimed responsibility for the attack. This is a team that first appeared in 2020 and until July last year had still delivered four blows with gas cylinders.