The Marfin case moves forward after 16 years: two suspects were brought to court

16 years later after a fatal arson Marfin Bank branches in Athens police detained two men. They are accused of premeditated murder of three bank employees.

Both 42-year-old suspects were taken from the Attica Police Headquarters to the Evelpidon Judicial Complex on the evening of July 10 under heavy security. One of the men hid his face, the second did not try to avoid the attention of journalists.

The detainees were given time to familiarize themselves with the case materials and must testify to the 3rd regular investigator in the morning on Tuesday, July 14. They are presumed innocent until a court decision is made.

What led the police to the suspects

According to ERTthe impetus for reopening the investigation was an anonymous email in which the alleged participants in the attack were named.

Police then re-examined photographs and videos of the May 5, 2010 demonstration and compared them with other criminal cases. The investigation claims to have found matching external signs and movement routes of the group near the Marfin branch.

Another person involved in the case is a 46-year-old woman who has been living in the UK for recent years. An international arrest warrant has been issued against her.

Tragedy of May 5, 2010

During a mass demonstration against the first memorandum, unknown persons threw Molotov cocktails at a bank branch on Stadiou Street.

Three employees died from the smoke: a man and two women, one of whom was pregnant. Previously, another defendant in the case was acquitted, and three bank executives were convicted of insufficient security measures.

Defense position

The detainees’ lawyer, Annie Paparrusou, said that she has not yet received full access to the materials, but believes that the case “has no factual basis” and will be refuted during the investigation.

Thus, the key question will not be the anonymous report itself, but whether investigators will be able to confirm the accusation with independent evidence: video recordings, photographs, witness statements and other materials.

Editorial comment

New arrests in the Marfin case after 16 years not only raise hopes that the crime will be solved, but also uncomfortable questions. For years, the police had a huge amount of photographs, videos and materials from other cases. Therefore, society has the right to ask: why were the alleged participants only now able to be identified and what real role did the anonymous letter play?

The investigation was officially resumed back in 2020, and the current charge, according to the police, is based not only on an anonymous report, but also on a repeated comparison of archival materials. However, the moment of the arrests inevitably acquires political significance: the authorities receive a high-profile story about restoring justice and fighting crime at a time when early elections are again being discussed in the country.

However, it is premature to say that the case is directly directed against Syriza or that the leadership of the left parties organized violence in the streets. Such accusations require concrete evidence. But it cannot be denied that during the years of crisis, mass protest was repeatedly used by political forces, radical groups and various centers of influence in their own interests.

The outcome of that period was tragic not only because of the deaths and destruction. After several years of rallies, clashes, unfulfilled promises and agreements against which society allegedly protested, a significant part of citizens became disillusioned with the very possibility of changing anything. Mass political mobilization gave way to apathy and high voter turnout.

According to the editors, this was one of the most severe consequences of the crisis: society spent enormous energy, but received neither justice nor real influence on decisions. Against this background, it became much easier for the state and political elites to implement measures against which hundreds of thousands of people took to the streets a few years earlier.

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