Fixed basketball matches: Liolios and associate before investigating judge – Gianakis seeks to testify
Provisional detention of former referee Papapetrou following rejection of his defence statement – 50 suspected matches from 2018 to 2026 at the centre of investigation.
Provisional detention of Papapetrou – Statements continue on fixed matches
Former referee Petros Papapetrou was placed in provisional detention after his defence statement before judicial authorities, as part of an investigation into match-fixing in Greek basketball. According to Dikastiko.gr, Papapetrou was the first defendant to testify and failed to convince authorities either regarding the allegations of altering matches or concerning the source of the €820,000 found in his home.
The procedure continues with fresh statements: on Sunday, Angelos Liolios, president of the Basketball Federation, is expected to appear before the investigating judge, together with a businessman considered to be his close associate. On Monday, one active referee and two former referees are to testify.
Case file covering approximately 50 matches from 2018 to 2026
In the hands of judicial authorities is a case file containing evidence of targeted interventions in approximately fifty basketball matches during the period 2018–2026. Those involved are alleged to have systematically influenced results, artificially determining promotions and relegations of teams.
Matches involving Promitheas Patras are at the centre, along with matches involving PAOK, Aris and AEK. From the messages contained in the case file, open collusion emerges aimed at impeding the progress of specific teams, with defendants stating explicitly that they desired the defeat of rivals owing to personal disputes.
Two witnesses voluntarily approach the prosecutor – and "payments" via placement
A decisive role in the investigation is played by the statements of two witnesses who approached the prosecutor voluntarily. The first, an active referee, states that he participated in thirty matches in the second division where interventions were recorded.
This same witness reveals that remuneration for certain referees was not made in cash, but through their systematic placement in critical matches. The second witness, a businessman and team president in the same division, refers to sums of money that were circulated to serve specific competitive interests.
Panayiotis Gianakis seeks to file a civil action claim
A new dimension to the case is given by the intention of former international basketball player and coach Panayiotis Gianakis to testify before the court and, should it be deemed necessary, to proceed with a statement supporting the charges. His lawyer, Andreas Mitsainas, visited the investigating judge's offices to be informed of the progress of the investigation.
According to Mitsainas, Gianakis will make a public statement next Thursday, once he has obtained full knowledge of the evidence. His statement is expected to focus on reports of alleged retaliatory whistles against him: one of the key witnesses describes an incident in which Gianakis — then on Aris's bench — received a double technical foul and was ejected from a match.
Source: Dikastiko.gr