- Olympiacos, which Marinakis also owns, have released an incendiary statement
- The Greek club claims the misdemeanor charges are part of a blackmail attempt
- LISTEN NOW: It’s All Kicking Off!, available wherever you get your podcasts. New episodes every Monday and Thursday
Nottingham Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis has been charged with misdemeanours including ‘supporting a criminal organisation as well as inciting sports-related violence’.
Olympiacos, which Marinakis also owns, have released an explosive statement in response to the move, claiming it is a blackmail attempt by ‘those who operate under parastatal conditions in the public life of the country’.
Marinakis was charged along with a number of officials from the Greek club in connection with an investigation into a criminal organisation within football which was linked to the murder of a police officer last year, according to reports in Greece.
Each has been summoned to appear before the investigating magistrate next Tuesday, but can request a delay to allow them to prepare a defence.
Dozens of individuals, including key members of Olympiacos fan group Gate 7, have been detained ahead of a trial following the death of officer Giorgos Lyggeridis, who was shot in the thigh and killed when violence flared at a volleyball match between Olympiacos and Panathinaikos in Athens.
In a statement, Olympiacos say the charges are ‘a new attempt to blackmail Olympiacos in order to bend both the Olympiacos family and its President himself.
Nottingham Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis has been charged with misdemeanours
The charges are for ‘supporting a criminal organisation and inciting sports-related violence’
Marinakis-owned Olympiacos have released an explosive statement claiming it is a blackmail attempt by ‘those who operate under parastatal conditions in the public life of the country’
‘This development came as a continuation of the unjust mass targeting of our followers as a criminal organisation,’ they add.
‘Even the most naive can understand that the time chosen is not random. This method has political characteristics and unfortunately uses the Justice itself as a tool.
‘Those who operate under parastatal conditions in the public life of the country are responsible for this mess.
‘The President of PAE Olympiacos and the Olympiacos family have a clear conscience, they are not being blackmailed, they are not bending.’