1. Acquittal by the Appeal Court of Thessaloniki for our client, accused of establishing a criminal organization and synergy to fraud, repeatedly and in an attempt by the perpetrators who commit fraud for habitual criminal, with a total loss that exceeds EUR 30.000.
Our client and her co-defendants were referred to the Appeal Court of Thessaloniki, with the accusation that in Thessaloniki, from the beginning of 2007 until July 18th, 2007, they formed and joined a criminal group of three or more persons (organization form), with structured and sustained action,seeking to commit fraud and to obtain financial benefits for its members.In particular, they were accused that in the aforementioned place and time, they formed a hierarchically structured, long-term criminal group with a view to sustained and planned action aiming to continue committing fraud by producing falsified supporting documents for consumer and housing loans to households, deceiving the competent for disbursing loans, obtaining funds while they costumers did not meet the legal requirements for receiving loans.
According to the indictment, the group’s structure had the status and the ability to dispose large sums of money and its members possessed a variety of technical and telecommunication means to forge documents, steal false certificates and delegate to third parties the identification of the false certificates necessary for them, i.e. documents necessary for the commission of fraud offenses.
Once the preparatory inquiry has been completed along with the lawyers' proposals, the Public Prosecutor at the Court of Appeal accepted the request of defense counsel, Mr. Georgios K. Paraskevas, proposing to discharge our client and to declare his innocence for all the acts for which he was charged. The proposal was unanimously accepted by the President and the other members of the Court and the notice of release was issued.
Our law firm succeeded in acquitting and total exemption for our client of all charges relating to the establishment of a criminal organization and synergy to fraud repeatedly.
2. Acquittal by the Appeal Court of Thessaloniki for our client, accused for robbery and physical harm.
Our client and his co-defendants were referred to the Appeal Court of Thessaloniki, with the accusation that on May 11th2006 in Thessaloniki, a car approached a pedestrian and the occupantsforcibly grabbed her bag. Despite the victim's attempt to resist, the occupants of the car, shared the bag’s content collectively, thereby committing criminal offenses of robbery andphysical harm.
After the closure of the preparatory inquiry and the lawyers' proposals were completed, the Public Prosecutor at the Court of Appeal accepted the request of defense counsel, Mr. Georgios K.Paraskevas, proposing to discharge the client and to declare his innocence for all the acts for which he was charged. The propose was unanimously accepted by the President and the other members of the Courtdeclaring our client not guilty.
Our law office achieved the acquittal of our client of all charges related to robbery and physical harm.
3. The Court of First Instance of West Macedonia
Our client was accused for malicious tax evasion in the form of non-refundable Value Added Tax (VAT) repeatedly. Penaltyof three years imprisonment with acknowledgment ofmitigating circumstance 84 paragraph 2b of Greek criminal code.
Our client was brought before the Court of First Instance of West Macedonia with the accusation that from January 1stto December 31st 2011, in the city of Ptolemaida,she committed the offense oftax evasion, since she did not pay the proper VAT to the State. In particular, the amount of tax he did not disburse for 2011 exceeds EUR 75.000.
In particular, our client was a manager and a regular member of a general partnership, a company which is trading wheat, maize, feed, barley, rye, cereals as well as the standardization, maintenance and drying up ofcereals.She was required to submit two regular statements of Value Added Tax (Φ.Π.Α.) to the competent Public Financial Service (Δ.Ο.Υ.), for the first and the second semester of 2011, while the amount that she had to pay -and did not payduring the above mentioned months- refers to the financial year from 1st January 2011 to 31st December 2011, was confirmed to be EUR 126.327.
Alleged assertion in defense of the recognition of a mitigating circumstance under Article 84 par. 2b of Criminal Code "The accused was pushed to his practice for no modest reasons" (Χρειάζεταιόντωςεδώ;)
In times of severe economic downturn, the State is increasingly cracking down on criminal repression, an initiative fueled by the earlier inability to tackle financial crime, which has led to the emergence of new financial criminals who would never have been convicted of offenses under different circumstances. This category also includes our client. Specifically, the category of non-refundable Value Added Tax for the financial year 2011, which is charged to ourclient, refers to transactions that took place in terms of the delivery of goods by our client’s company and the simultaneous issue of the legal document, but never were repaid, as our customers' partial payment assurances were denied.
Our law firm succeeded in recognizing the mitigating circumstance of the punishable offense without contemptible incentives and the conviction of our clientfor the crime of tax evasion in the form of non-payment of VATconsecutively. She was finally punished by a term of imprisonment of three years.*
4. Drug trafficking, possession and harvesting of Indian cannabis plants. After the interrogation, our client was released.
Our client was brought before the Investigating Judge of Western Macedonia on charges that he was trafficing - in the form of possession and without being addict - drugs, i.e. substances that act on the nervous system and cause the person to become addicted to them.
He was arrested by police officers inside his stables, that is, in a place where he could at any time find them and actually dispose them at his own discretion,
a metal canister containing hemp mixed with tobacco of two grams weight, a can containing cannabis mixed with tobacco of a net weight of thirty grams, a glass jar containing cannabis in a tassel thirty-four grams, a glass jar containing cannabis in a tassel of four grams, a glass jar containing hemp in a tassel of three hundred and eight grams, a plastic pot containing hemp in a tassel net weight of seventy-five grams, a plastic pot containing hemp in a tassel net of two hundred and nine grams, a plastic pot containing hemp in a net weight of ninety-seven grams and a plastic pot containing one hundred sixty-one grams of net hemp. The above quantities, due to their amount but also to their partitioning into several packages, were not intended for his own use, but for the purpose of distributing them further to third parties.
Once the interrogation procedure has been completed, with the consent of both the Investigating Judge and thePublic Prosecutor, our client was released but he was given restrictive terms of prohibition to leave the country, visit the police station of his place of residence within the first five days of each month and payment of a financial guarantee of EUR 5000.
5. The Court of First Instance of West Macedonia
Our client was accused for furtherance within the country of foreign third-country nationals who do not have the right to enter the Greek territory, on a regular basis. Penalty of two years and ten months imprisonment with acknowledgment of mitigating circumstance 84 paragraph 2b of Greek criminal code.
Our client was brought before the Court of First Instance of West Macedonia with the accusation of furthering third-country nationals within the country, who were not allowed to enter the Greek territoryon a regular basis. In Particular, in Karestia of the Municipality of Kastoria, on 18thNovember 2013, along with his co-defendant, they assisted third-country nationals, who were not allowed to enter Greek territory, to entered the Greek territory illegally through unauthorized border crossings of the Greek-Albanians borders, and without the legal formalities.
Alleged allegations in defense of the recognition of mitigating circumstances under Article 84 paragraphs 2a and 2e of the Greek Criminal Code:
84 par. 2 a): The offender lived, until the time he committed the crime, an honest, individual, family, professional and social life. The contested act, that has been accused of, is an exception, since he has never been convicted for any crime in the past, while he always entering and leaving the country legally without any intention of violating the law. He had never a negative impact on society, but on the contrary, he had always sought to be a legitimate member of society, occasionally engaged in agricultural work in Greece and not creating the slightest suspicion of abusive behavior for himself. Therefore, in conjunction with the absence of any criminal record and the acknowledgment of mitigating circumstance of his prior individual, family, social and professional life.
84 par. 2 e): The offender has behaved well for a relatively long time after his act, even during his detention.
Our law firm succeeded in convincing the Court to take into account the mitigating circumstance of our client’s prior lawful life along with his well-behaved attitude during his two years and ten months in prison for the offense of furtherance within the country foreign third-country nationals who do not have the right to enter the Greek territory, on a regular basis.
6. Imposition of a temporary sentence instead of the proposed life imprisonment by the Court of Giannitsa for the case of intentional killing performed in a calm state of mind.
Our client was referred to the hearing of the Court of Giannitsa, on the charge that in Thessaloniki, on 20thDecember 2008, with the intention of killing the already deceased victim and being in a calm state of mind both at the time of the decision and during the execution of his act, he acted using a knife, with a blade length of 25 centimeters, and gave multiple blows to the body of the victim, causing burrowing of the heart, the left lung, the liver and the left kidney which finally caused the death of the victim. In addition, he was referred to the Court with the charge that, in the same place and time, acting with intent, he brought with him illegally, i.e. without the permission of the competent police authority, a weapon within the meaning of Law 2168/1993 and specifically a knife with a blade length of 25 centimeters and a 10 centimeters handle which possession is not justified for domestic, professional or educational use, art, hunting, fishing or other related use. Finally, our client was referred to the Court for the fact that, in the same place and time, acting with intent, using a weapon, that is an object that is suitable for attack or defense, within the meaning of Article 1 par. 2 of Law 2168/1993, committed the crime of premeditated homicide. After the closure of the preparatory inquiry and the speech of the defense attorney Mr. Georgios K. Paraskevas, who requested the granting of the mitigation of his previous honorable life, the Court of Giannitsa recognized the attenuating circumstance by imposing the sentence of temporary imprisonment.
Our law firm has managed to impose a temporary sentence instead of proposed life imprisonmentby the Penal Code for the crime of premeditated murder, following the recognition of the mitigating circumstance of the previous honorable life.
7. Civil action within criminal proceedings in the Court of Drama and imposing a sentence of seven years and three months imprisonment on the accused person for the offense of sexual abuse of a low mental aptitude person. Validation of the same sentence for the accused person by the Court of Appeal of Thrace.
Our client as litigation guardian of her adult child with mental disorder and victim of this case, filed a complaint against the accused person who was referred to the Court of Drama with the following charges:
a) For the fact that during the period 01st March 2011 to 22nd February 2012 and in unspecified exact time points, with more than one act, which constitute a continuation of sexual abuse of a low mental aptitude person. In particular, taking advantage of the fact that the victim had severe mental deprivation, he repeatedly forced a sexual intercourse with her,
b) Moreover, In Podochori of Kavala on 02nd March 2012 he was found to possess illegal ammunition. In particular, he owned eighteen hunting cartridges type MAX32, in his home, without hunting license.
After the closure of the preparatory inquiry, the competent Public Prosecutor, accepting the request of the attorney Mr. Georgios K. Paraskevas representing the litigation guardian of the victim for the conviction of the accused person, proposed the guilt for all the acts for which he was accused. Both the President and the Jurors accepted the Prosecutor's proposal for the conviction of the accused person. The Court, rejecting the relevant allegations of the defense counsel, unanimously found the accused person guilty and sentenced him to a total of seven years and three months imprisonment.
Our law office has achieved an exemplary punishment and the criminal conviction of the accused person by defending the interests of our client suffering from severe mental deprivation and by imposing the aforementioned heavy sentence of imprisonment. The above sentence was upheld by the Court of Drama.
8. Acquittal by the Criminal Court of Thessaloniki forour client, accused of usurpation and unlawful impersonation of a religious official of a recognized religion in Greece.
Our client was referred together with his co-defendant to the hearing of the District Court of Thessaloniki on the charge that in Thessaloniki on 14th November 2013, he intentionally performed the sacrament of marriage according to Muslim doctrine, between two residents of Thessaloniki at the Holy Muftiate of the Holy Mosque of Thessaloniki and subsequently drafted the declaration of their wedding at the above mentioned date, which states:
"The signed Imam … of the parish of the Mosque of Thessaloniki, I declare that today in… of the month … of the year 20… and time … I performed … and in the above Holy Muftiate according to the Muslim doctrine, the marriage ceremony of the following spouses …" indicating in the respective spaces of the above computerized text the following: "14 ","November","13","10:00", So that the text has the following final form: "The signed Imam … of the parish of the Mosque of Thessaloniki, I declare that today on ...14… of the month… November… of the year 2013… and at 10:00 I performed at … and in the above Holy Muftiate, according to the Muslim doctrine marriage ceremony of the following spouses …", In the text that follows, he wrote the full details of the two spouses, who are Greek Muslims, citizens of Orestiada, Evros and residents of Thessaloniki. In the middle of the computerized indication: "20.. Number of male marriage license- Number of female marriage license" and in the computerized indication "HOLY MUFTIATE OF DIDYMOTEICHO" he wrote twice (once in the indication for each sheet) the number "68/2013", putting his signature at the end of the text and under the computerized indication "Imam" and below it, where there was his computerized name "…", he put his signature and a circular stamp, which had two circles, under elements in the outer circle "HELLENIC REPUBLIC" and in the internal circle "MUFTIATE OF EVROS IMAM OF THESSALONIKI" and in the center he bore the emblem of the Hellenic Republic, while he knew that he did not have the legal authority to do so, that his co-defendant (accused of this criminal act and also as an instigate) did not legally appoint him to perform the sacrament of marriage, according to the Muslim doctrine in the area of Thessaloniki, of the two Greek Muslim citizens, residents of Thessaloniki, since Holy Mosque of Thessaloniki did not exist. The address of the alleged Holy Mosque of Thessaloniki was the address of the spouses, and a Muslimmarriage ceremony is not allowed in a house. For all the above reasons, he it did not have the authority to perform the sacrament of marriage according to the Muslim doctrine, among the two Greek Muslim inhabitants of Thessaloniki, nor did have the status of Mufti, as stated in the stamp at the end of the mentioned document.
After the closure of the preparatory inquiry, the competent Public Prosecutor at the District Court, accepted the request of the defense lawyerMr. Georgios K. Paraskevas, who proposed the acquittal of our client for the act for which he is accused. The President also accepted the Prosecutor's proposal for the release of our client, declaring our client not guilty.
Our law office managed to dismiss our client of all charges of usurpation and unlawful impersonation of a religious official of a recognized religion in Greece.
9. Acquittal by the Criminal Court of Kavala for our client accused for the acts of poaching and illegal possession and use of wireless transmitter.
Our client along with his co-defendant were referred to the hearing of the Criminal Court of Kavala, on the charge that in the forest area Latomio of the settlement of Kokkinochori, Municipality of Paggaio of the Regional Unit of Kavala, on 17th October 2012, they were caught hunting using hunting weapons but without having a hunting license by the competent forest authority of their place of permanent residence, for the hunting season 2012-2013. According to the indictment, they were also referred to the Court on charges that by acting together, they were caught hunting wild bird species (mountain partridge), using wireless transmitter to coordinate their action during the hunt, although this method of hunting is expressly prohibited. After the closure of the preparatory inquiry, the competent Prosecutor of the Court, accepted the request of the defense attorney Mr. Georgios K. Paraskeva, who proposed the acquittal of our client for all the acts for which he was accused. The President also accepted the Prosecutor's proposal for the release of our client, declaring him not guilty.
Our law firm succeeded in acquitting our client of all charges related to poaching and illegal possession and use of wireless transmitter.
10. Acquittal by the Criminal Court of Thessaloniki for our client accused for the act of non-willful fire-raising.
Our client was referred to the hearing of the Criminal Court of Thessaloniki, on the charge that in Thessaloniki on 02nd May 2006 due to lack of attention and under some other circumstances, he caused a fire which could put in danger someone’s property. More specifically, according to the indictment, as a tenant of an apartment in a building at Neapoli in Thessaloniki, he left on an electric stove, boiling a cooking utensil with oil, which due to carelessness of the accused person, it was overheated and then ignited, causing a fire in the kitchen area, with the high risk of spreading to other apartments in the building. The fire burned the absorber, partly a wooden kitchen cupboard, while the smoke has blackened the walls of the kitchen and the hall of the apartment.
After the closure of the preparatory inquiry, the competent Public Prosecutor of the Criminal Court, accepted the request of the defense lawyer Mr. Georgios K. Paraskevas, who proposed the acquittal of our client and his innocence for all the acts for which he was accused. The request was unanimously accepted by the President and the other members of the composition of the Court naming our client not guilty.
Our law office has succeeded in acquitting our client of all charges related to the act of non-willful fire-raising.