Defendant in train crash trial says will file charges against transport minister

A erstwhile elder railway authoritative who is among the 36 radical facing trial for various charges implicit Greece’s deadliest train clang announced his volition to record transgression charges against the Minister of Transport and Infrastructure, Kostas Kyranakis, during Tuesday’s tribunal proceedings successful Larissa.

The determination came a time aft the authorities joined successful the ineligible enactment against the defendant, the erstwhile caput of the Larissa Inspection Department for Central and Southern Greece, and different railway officials, including the stationmaster who erroneously sent a rider train and a freight train hurtling towards each different connected the aforesaid track.

The suspect is the 1 who appointed the untrained stationmaster successful the specific presumption adjacent though helium knew, according to the indictment, that helium did not person the qualifications.

His lawyer told the tribunal that the State was solely liable for the fatal mishap connected February 28, pointing to a caller ruling of a civilian tribunal connected the mishap that demonstrated the lack of information systems connected the railway web – such arsenic traffic lights and the automatic braking system (ETCS) – which are causally linked to the collision.

“He did not perpetrate a transgression act. He did not disrupt the information of transport,” his lawyer stressed.

Alma Lata, parent of Claudia who mislaid her beingness successful the train crash, shouted, “he knew who [the stationmaster] was and helium enactment him there,” meaning the evening shift.

He besides said his lawsuit intends to support the charges against erstwhile Minister of Transport and Infrastructure, Kostas A. Karamanlis, who is being investigated by the Supreme Court for the misdemeanor of breach of work successful the Tempe case.

In total, retired of the 36 defendants, astir said done their lawyers that they reserved the close to record objections successful the adjacent session.

The tribunal adjourned for May 27 to let for scheduled work to facilitate proceedings successful the overcrowded, specially configured hallway astatine the Conference Center of the University of Thessaly’s Gaiopolis campus.

The catastrophe occurred connected the nighttime of February 28, 2023, when a rider train traveling from Athens to Thessaloniki, carrying galore students, collided head-on with a freight train successful the Tempe gorge successful cardinal Greece.

The interaction triggered a monolithic fireball that engulfed the beforehand carriages, sidesplitting respective passengers instantly, while the remains of some victims were ne'er recovered.