Golden Dawn’s Pappas led to prison as woman who sheltered him sentenced

Christos Pappas, the second in command in the Golden Dawn criminal organization, was transferred to Domokos jail in Central Greece on Friday afternoon, where other members of neo-Nazi organization convicted in last year’s trial are incarcerated.

Pappas, 59, was ordered to carry out his sentence at the maximum-security penitentiary after appearing before a sentencing prosecutor in Athens on Friday, following his arrest the previous day after nine months on the run from the law.

He will now serve out his sentence of 13 years and three months for running a criminal organization.

Upon arrival at the jail, he was interviewed by the governor and put in isolation for a period of 7 to 14 days under coronavirus protocols, during which he will also be tested for Covid-19.

The temporary holding area is in the same wing where the other leading members of Golden Dawn are jailed.

Pappas was arrested on Thursday night in the Athens suburb of Zografou after he was located in the apartment of a 51-year-old Greek-Ukrainian woman who had run for local office in the 2019 elections with Golden Dawn MP Ilias Kasidiaris.

The woman, who appeared in court on Friday, was sentenced to 30 months in jail, 17 months of which were suspended. She was released pending appeal.

According to sources, Pappas expressed the wish to share a cell with former MEP Yiannis Lagos, but such a decision is pending.

Meanwhile, Kathimerini has learned that Pappas had planned to escape abroad. According to sources, a relative of Pappas had been in contact with Italians about the possibility of him fleeing the country, most likely to Italy.

Among the items found in his hideout were a laptop and two mobile phones.

From the moment of Pappas’ disappearance, anti-terrorism police had started to investigate people closest to him, starting with family, other relatives and friends, to establish if any of them were sheltering the fugitive.

Police investigated a total of 300 people before police put the focus on the Greek-Ukrainian woman three days ago.

just three days before the Counter-Terrorism officials finally raided the ground floor house and arrested Pappas.

[ANA-MPA/Katherimini]