The hearing at the Mixed Jury Court of Athens was held today in particularly high tones, where the trial of Dimitris Lignadis, who is accused of serial rape of three minors and one adult, is taking place.
For more than four hours, the lawyer of the accused director and actor, Alexis Kougias, examined the witness, who had first denounced Dimitris Lignadis for raping him when he was still a minor - namely 16 years old. The questions were literally raining down on the now 27-year-old man and were intended to demonstrate, according to the defence, his unreliability and the contradictions to which he was subjected.
In the end, the session ended with Mr. Kougias filed a complaint for false testimony against the witness, citing 19 points in his testimony, which, according to him, demonstrate that "we are dealing here with an unprecedented perjury" and with a "common impostor."
As Kougias said, the witness's testimony is "absolutely false." This is because, among other things, his complaint against Dimitris Lignadis "was filed 10 or 11 years after the incident" and "there is no forensic report, but there are no witnesses either." Moreover, because the witness, according to the defence counsel, "contradicted himself about when he decided to file the complaint, confused the dates and did not tell the truth about his professional identity".
"We request the application of Article 38 and that the complaint be forwarded to the Public Prosecutor's Office for prosecution," Kougias said, while the 27-year-old's lawyer, Yannis Vlachos, reserved comment on this development at the next court session, which is set for March 18. However, the prosecutor pointed out that it is possible that further clarifications may be needed from the witness in relation to what he testified.
Recall that the young man, who said he was a prison officer in Sweden, testified yesterday in court that in 2011 he was raped by Dimitris Lignadis on the balcony of his apartment and that he lost consciousness immediately afterwards. Previously, as he had testified, the director had bought him a drink and a cannabis cigarette, and throughout their previous meetings and communications, the defendant had promised him a career in entertainment.
"I lived a nightmare that he had been pushing away for years, he had no experience, he took advantage of me, I was the perfect victim for him," the witness had said, testifying that even after his abuse the defendant had called him as if nothing had happened.
As the 27-year-old had said, he told him not to call him again and that he would sue him, but Dimitris Lignadis told him not to do so because he was sick and that he had cancer in his larynx. In fact, according to the witness, the accused was telling him about the health problems his mother was facing.
Today, after the young man had completed his testimony, he was examined by Mr Kougias and the following dialogue took place in the audience:
Kougias: How many people knew about your contact with D. Lignadi? Did you make this contact and seek to meet him through Facebook?
Witness: My best friend ..., my friend ..., ..., my cousin Hassan and my parents.
Continuing, Kougias asked the witness to tell the court the exact address where he lives in Sweden, in case he wants to communicate a lawsuit or a complaint. This question provoked a reaction from the witness's lawyer, Yannis Vlachos, who pointed out that his client's details are known to the court. Vlachos said that the way the defendant's lawyer phrased his questions to his client was intimidating.
Subsequently, Kougias asked the 27-year-old to state the address of the house where he lives in Voula. "Please. I don't want to say, I feel insecure. In this time I have my worries. I don't want to say while I am in Greece where I live and where I sleep at night," the witness replied. At this point the president of the court addressed the witness with the words, "You have the right not to answer, but it will be evaluated by the court."
Kougias: With which company did you come from Sweden?
Witness: I did not come from Gothenburg. I came from Dubai. I went to do something else, because my job in Sweden was over.
Kougias: So you are not currently a prison officer?
Witness: My contract expired on February 28, 2022.
Kougias: How long ago did you go to Dubai?
Witness: A few weeks before the trial. I have the tickets. I came to Greece on February 8 and since then I have been living in Voula. I went to Dubai at the beginning of December.
Kougias: Why since you live in Dubai did you say yesterday that you are a prison officer? How did you suddenly choose Dubai?
Witness. And I thought Dubai was a good choice.
Kougias: On your CV page you say that you graduated from the University of Gothenburg....
Witness: I am at the University of Gothenburg. I started, but I didn't continue.
Kougias: Why do you write that "I work for the Swedish government" and that you have many years of experience in industrial production
Witness: I have worked in various industries. I have been to Dubai to attend a real estate program.
Kouyas: In your resume you write that you are a permanent resident in Dubai, that you have finished university, that you have just moved from Sweden to do your passion and that you are seeking offers. This sir here in Greece is called fraud.
Witness: in Dubai the training takes three days.
Chairman: So you have finished the training?
Witness: no. I have done the training, but I have not taken the exam which takes three days. The training lasts a lifetime.
Kougias: You appeared as a civil servant when you are not. How many jobs have you done?
Witness: In various industries, as a translator, as a real estate agent in Sweden, as a translator and as a prison officer. I have also worked in a program for underage refugees coming from abroad.
Kougias: Why don't you stand in a job?
Witness: Because I want to.
Kougias: With false evidence you went to Dubai.
Witness: I changed for different reasons.
Kougias: After the alleged rape, why did you contact the accused?
Witness: It was nothing more than a communication, like how are you and how are you doing and how are you doing with the illness you have. A few days after the rape he called me. I threatened him not to call me again or I would sue him. And then he sent me messages on Facebook.
Kougias: To your rapist in the year 2015-2016 do you ask him if he will do something? If he would ever know you to anyone?
Witness. I have since deleted him because he told me that you should give k@@@@@ to me and to the person who would know me.
Kougias: Is the defendant gay?
Witness: I don't know if he is gay. I know he is a pedophile.
Vlachos: Are we going to bring sexism and fascism into the courtroom? Let him ask his client if he's gay. These things are against the law. They have nothing to do with the crime in question. But are questions being asked about people's sexual orientation, which is a personal fact?
Chairman: Why are you shouting and taking the floor alone?
The LinkedIn photos and the interview
Earlier, tensions had risen again in the courtroom when Kougias showed the witness photos that he had posted on his LinkedIn page. "The photos displayed on the Internet show the image of a man who frequents rich places and likes to show off his body," the defendant's lawyer told the witness, only to be followed by the following dialogue in the courtroom
Kougias: Why do you show your body all the time?
Witness: what all the time? In a photograph
Kougias: Here? The arms?
Witness: I like to work out
Kougias: Do you have any pictures of the serious realtor here? Who are you addressing? Who is your clientele?
Witness: I started as a real estate agent a month ago.
Kougias: You told us four years.
Witness: Yes, magazines. I have been a broker for the last few years.
Kougias also referred to what the 27-year-old said in his testimony about the event that motivated him to take legal action and file a lawsuit against Dimitris Lignadis. As he had said, it was an interview sent to him by two of his own people, Vassilis K., who had also denounced his sexual abuse in 1995.
Kougias: How do you explain that the interview you say you were sent and read was given the day after your own complaint?
Witness: I read newspapers and I also saw him on shows.
Kougias: In the broadcasts you say, Lignadi's name is not mentioned.
The questions of the chair about the changes in dates
However, the president of the court also asked the witness questions about the changes in the dates of the events he complained about.
President: Why didn't you first wait until you had agreed with your friends about the correct dates and then file the lawsuit? What was the reason for the rush? (ed. In many of the incidents the witness had reported, he mentioned that his friends were in front)
Witness: I didn't want to talk to friends and relatives because I didn't want anyone to stop me.
Chairman: Why would they stop you?
Witness: Because after they found out they were scared. That's their mentality, don't get in trouble.
Chairman: Why did the lawsuit have to be filed then and not a month later? Was the defendant going to leave? Would the statute of limitations expire?
Witness: I believed that then was the right time. I felt I had to get into this quickly.
Chairman: Why?
Witness: When I called the lawyer and we talked, he told me that that was the right time to file the lawsuit.
Chairman: Why didn't you wait to talk to witnesses first when it had been ten years? What would you have gained from this situation?
Witness: I was not very well at that time, I wanted to write it (the lawsuit) and send it.
Chairman: So you are saying that you were not well?
Vlachos: It mentions in the complaint the witnesses. The same night the police went and found one of them.
Source: protothema.gr
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