For her sealing the operation in Ghazi, where he lost her the 16-year-old student’s life, its press representative told ERTnews Hellenic Police, Constantia Dimoglidou, explaining the procedure followed and the findings of the preliminary investigation.
As Ms. Dimoglidou mentioned, Mr Municipality was immediately informed by the Greek Police for the case and the administrative sanctions imposed.
“There is a criminal procedure – the Municipality is informed that they have imposed administrative sanctions, based on Law 5216 to protect minors from drinking alcohol and using tobacco products. Then he proceeds to seal the store, as was done in this particular case,” he said characteristically.
OR Sub-Directorate of Juvenile Protection communicated the criminal actions taken on the case, while the Dimos immediately proceeded to seal it shop, as – as the spokeswoman pointed out – “it is not possible for a store that broke the law with such tragic results to continue to operate.”
The reasons for sealing
Asked about the reason for the sealing, Mrs. Dimoglidou explained that the decision was based on the findings of the preliminary investigation, according to which it was established that minors had entered the premises and that alcohol had been consumed.
“It is also prohibited for minors to enter such shops, unless it is for planned school or social events, which are declared in advance on a special platform, so that there is a preventive and on-site control by the Police. Even then, however, the consumption of alcohol remains absolutely prohibited.”he underlined. The spokeswoman also pointed out the difficulty of continuous checks: “It is not possible to have a police officer outside every shop, kiosk or wine cellar. The responsibility of the owners themselves is needed, but also the contribution of the citizens, who with anonymous complaints have helped to identify similar violations”.
Toxicological and chemical findings
Referring to the toxicology tests of the 16-year-old, Ms. Dimoglidou stated that the results are expected soon, due to the urgent nature of the case. “We believe that we will have answers in a shorter time, as it needs to be established whether alcohol consumption is linked to death. At the same time, we are also waiting for the results from the State Chemistry for the samples collected from the store, so that it can be checked if there were adulterated drinks”, he explained.
If it turns out to be a fraud, he noted, there will be additional criminal charges, as it is “an exposure to danger for everyone who visited the store, not just minors.”
The statements of friends and the work of the Police
The press representative said that all the 16-year-old’s friends have already testified, giving additional testimonies, as the first ones were taken in shock conditions.
“The youths in the group cooperated fully and provided all the information required to complete the preliminary investigation,” he said.
EL.AS has also requested official correspondence from EKAB and the hospital, to ascertain whether there were other patrons who felt unwell after drinking in the same establishment.
350 minors in hospitals within three months
On the occasion of the tragic incident, Constantia Dimoglidou revealed that only in the last quarter EL.AS. has carried out 24,000 checks in nightclubs across the country, as part of the implementation of the new legal framework for the protection of minors.
These controls led to the formation of 140 case files and automatic arrests in cases where minors ended up in the hospital due to intoxication.
In total, 350 minors have been hospitalized this year due to alcohol consumption.