Greek man found guilty of policeman’s death in volleyball riots

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PIRAEUS, Greece (Reuters) – A Greek court found a 20-year old man guilty of manslaughter on Wednesday over the 2023 death of a policeman hit by a flare during clashes with hooligans at a volleyball game.

Violence has plagued sport in Greece in recent years, with hardcore supporters following the same club across different sports and frequently clashing with police.

Authorities have promised a crackdown.

Policeman Georgios Lyngeridis, 31, was seriously injured as a rowdy crowd attacked police outside the stadium in the midst of a volleyball match between Olympiakos and Panathinaikos on December 7, 2023. He died from his injuries weeks later.

The defendant denied manslaughter. Disclosure of defendants’ names is subject to restrictions in Greece.

The court handed him a life sentence – or up to 20 years in Greece – and an additional 19 years in prison on Wednesday.

Lyngeridis’ death prompted a broader investigation that led to dozens of arrests of fans of the Olympiakos sports club.

Evangelos Marinakis, chair of the soccer division of the club, and four other board members are expected to stand trial on misdemeanour charges as part of that probe. They deny wrongdoing.

(Reporting by Renee Maltezou; Editing by Andrew Cawthorne and Bernadette Baum)