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PoliticsGreece

Greece: Fugitive far-right Golden Dawn sent to prison

July 2, 2021

Golden Dawn deputy leader Christos Pappas had been on the run from Greek authorities since October.

https://p.dw.com/p/3vujO
Golden Dawn leader Christos Pappas
Pappas owned a furniture store before going into politicsImage: imago/ZUMA Press

Greek authorities Friday sent Christos Pappas, the deputy leader of the far-right Golden Dawn political party and a former member of Greek parliament, to a high security prison following his arrest Thursday.

Pappas had been on the run from authorities since October, when he was sentenced to more than 13 years in jail. A landmark trial that month convicted over 50 Golden Dawn defendants on charges such as running a criminal organization, murder and assault.

What do we know so far?

Police arrested Pappas in the Athens neighborhood of Zografou. He was living in an apartment registered under a different name.

Pappas is set to be brought before a prosecutor on Friday, according to a statement from police.

Left-wing party Syriza called Pappas' arrest in a statement a "positive development" and said it expects "seriousness and responsiblity" from Greece's center-right government in dealing with the situation.

Pappas is a fan of Italian dictator Benito Mussolini and has also been photographed under a Nazi flag. He is a collector of fascist memorabilia. 

Pappas' military general father helped Greek dictator Georgios Papadopoulos rise to power in 1967.

What is Golden Dawn?

Golden Dawn is an ultranationalist political party founded in 1985 that opposes immigration and the European Union. Its founder, Nikolaos Michaloliakos, has admired Nazism and denied the Holocaust.

Party members have been criticized for espousing racist and antisemitic ideas.

Golden Dawn had been a fringe political entity for decades, but the party surged in popularity during the Greek financial crisis in 2012. The party won 18 seats in Greek parliament that year while running on an anti-austerity, anti-migrant platform.

A criminal inquiry was launched into the party in 2013, after a prominent anti-fascist rapper was murdered. The trial of Golden Dawn leaders began in 2015. 

The party's popularity has dwindled in recent years, as it failed to win a single seat during Greek parliamentary elections in 2019.

wd/aw (AP, AFP, dpa)