After six years of legal proceedings following the tragic fire in Mati, the judiciary has today rendered its initial verdict, bringing closure to some of the involved parties.
The verdict of the 21 involved parties saw six defendants found guilty, while 15 others were acquitted of all charges.
Among those held accountable by the court were five members of the fire brigade, along with Konstantinos Angelopoulos, the resident whose yard served as the origin of the devastating blaze. The guilty verdicts were met with vocal reactions, including shouts of "Shame on you!" from the relatives of the victims present in the courtroom.
The six defendants found guilty were as follows:
1. Sotiris Terzoudis, the former Chief of the Fire Brigade, was convicted of manslaughter by negligence and bodily injury by negligence. Specifically, he was held responsible for the helicopter diversion, which resulted in 102 fatalities and 32 injuries.
2. Vassilis Mattheopoulos, then deputy chief of the Fire Brigade, was found guilty of manslaughter by negligence for the deaths of nine individuals at sea. His failure to issue an order to move the boats for rescuing those who had fallen into the sea to escape the fire led to this conviction.
3. Ioannis Fostieris, former head of ESKE (Special Disaster Response Unit), was convicted of manslaughter by negligence for the deaths of 102 people and bodily injury by negligence for 32 others.
4. Nikolaos Panagiotopoulos, former Commander of the Athens Fire Services, was found guilty of manslaughter by negligence for the deaths of 102 individuals and bodily injury by negligence for 32.
5. Charalambos Chionis, former Commander of the Fire Services of Eastern Attica, was convicted of manslaughter by negligence for 102 fatalities and bodily injury by negligence for 32.
6. Konstantinos Angelopoulos, the resident whose yard served as the point of origin for the fire, was also found guilty.
On the other hand, 15 defendants were acquitted of all charges. Despite the prosecution's recommendations, individuals including local government officials, fire department officials, and regional authorities were cleared of wrongdoing.
(Source: Kathimerini)
