Tempe Trial: Prosecutor Opposes Calling Georgiadis as Witness – Nalmpanti's Mobile Phone Under Examination
The prosecutor recommended that Georgiadis and Markopoulos should not be called as witnesses, whilst the focus turned to the work mobile phone of assistant train driver Nikolaos Nalmpanti.
Tempe Trial: New Developments with Family Requests and Shocking Testimonies
According to Newsit.gr, the trial into the Tempe tragedy continued with significant developments: the prosecutor recommended that Adonis Georgiadis and Dimitris Markopoulos should not be called as witnesses, whilst the work mobile phone of assistant train driver Nikolaos Nalmpanti came into focus.
Nalmpanti's Mobile Phone and Request for Laboratory Examination
The family of Nalmpanti had requested an investigation into whether, after the passenger train departed from Larissa Railway Station, any communication attempt was made from the device to the station master or another person before the collision. The prosecutor recommended that an order be issued for the seizure of the device and that the lawful procedure be followed by the competent police authority, though she reserved her position on the request for a laboratory forensic examination to be conducted.
The mobile phone had been handed over to Nalmpanti's fiancée a few days after the accident and was submitted to the court the previous week.
Three New Requests from the Prosecution Side
During the session, three further requests were filed by the prosecution side. The first was submitted by Pavlos Aslanidis, father of Dimitris Aslanidis, and concerns bones stored at Larissa Court of Appeal. A request was made for the location, counting, identification and conducting of specialist examinations on samples to investigate the circumstances and cause of death.
According to what was stated at the trial, these bones had been collected from various locations in Larissa to which debris from the trains and soil from the site of the collision had been transferred.
The other two requests concern the calling as witnesses of seven former general secretaries of the Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport for the period 2016–2023, and the production of documents exchanged between the Greek government and the European Commission regarding railway safety.
It is also recalled that by decree of the judicial council of the Court of Cassation, Christos Triantópoulos is being referred to a special court for the alteration of the accident site before all the dead were collected.
"They Left Unjustly" – Harrowing Testimonies from Relatives
Alongside the procedural developments, testimonies from relatives of victims continued in the courtroom. "Our children left unjustly. They are victims of a state that shows no respect for human life," testified Lazaros Porfyridis, father of Kalliopi Porfyridi.
Her mother, Anna Karatzoglou, described the anguish of the first hours after the collision and what she witnessed in Larissa hospitals. Referring to the interventions carried out at the site of the tragedy, she stated: "By what right did they scatter my child? Why such haste, why such panic?" She continued: "Why was my child burnt? If some people had done their job properly, my child would be at home. What I demand, apart from the expansion of the indictment, is that you punish everyone who is responsible. Trust in Justice is not a given; I hope it will be earned."
Dimitris Bournazes, who lost his father and brother, testified: "I cannot believe they were lost because two trains were running on the same line. It is unthinkable. I would like justice to be served. The sentences must be exemplary."
The family of train guard Panagiotis Chazicharalampous stated: "From the next day we are living dead. Two families were destroyed. In one night everything went out. Heartfelt plea: whatever decision you make, put the feeling of a parent into it."
Also testified Angelos Bozo, son of Paulini Bozo, who worked in the train buffet. "If we had known the situation on the trains was like this, we would not have let him work there," he said. He also mentioned that in the first hours after the collision he saw "a blue van putting black bags" in it, whilst he had heard from his father about "frequent delays" and other problems on the railway.
The trial continues on Wednesday 30 September 2026 with further testimonies from relatives of the victims.
Source: Newsit.gr