A blast shook up the northern Attica suburb of Nea Erythrea at 3:50 this morning.
This was the second time that an explosive device was placed at the building that houses the restaurant and home of the sister of former General Secretary of National Defense Yiannis Sbokos, located at the junction of Kolokotroni and Kyprou streets in Nea Erythrea.
Sbokos, a close associate of Greece’s former Defense Minister Akis Tsochantzopoulos, is currently in prison over a bribe in an arms purchase case.
It was only recently that Sbokos had been the target of a similar attack. On April 16, an explosive device went off outside his home in Kolokotroni street, Kato Kifissia, while on May 15 another device exploded at his sister’s home and restaurant in Nea Erythrea. Also, on June 30, 2010, someone put fire on his son’s car outside his home.
A few days after the first blast, Sbokos was transferred from VI wing of the prison, to the psychiatric ward of the prison hospital, where he remains until today. Sources say that he was visited twice by officers of Counterterrorism Department and Police asking information about the case, but Sbokos refused to name a specific person as the alleged blackmailer. A different source revealed that a few hours after the May 15 explosion at the Sbokos family property in Nea Erytrea, the former General Secretary filed a suit naming long-term inmate Panagiotis Vlastos as the perpetrator of the blackmail.
Vlastos, however, denied any involvement in the case and said his name was implicated by Sbokos in an effort to secure better conditions in the psychiatric ward of Korydallos prison hospital.
The blast this morning caused several damages to the house and restaurant and to five vehicles parked outside the building. However, no injuries have been reported.
Police believes that the mastermind behind the attacks is a Korydallos inmate who is blackmailing the former General Secretary asking from him 20 million euros for “securing” his personal safety in prison.
See all the latest news from Greece and the world at Greekreporter.com. Contact our newsroom to report an update or send your story, photos and videos. Follow GR on Google News and subscribe here to our daily email!
