The Prosecutor of the Court of First Instance of Piraeus recently issued Decision No. 398/2025, by which the criminal prosecution against our client was dismissed.
Specifically, the aforementioned decision archived a late criminal complaint concerning the alleged offenses of fraud and embezzlement, committed repeatedly, involving an amount of nearly €4,000,000.According to the unfounded claims of the complainant – a foreign company owning a luxury yacht – the accused, consisting of the yacht’s captain and other crew members, allegedly colluded with the representative of the company responsible for the management and supply of the yacht to engage in fictitious overcharging for fuel and other supplies, as well as in the misappropriation of cash on board, to their own benefit and to the detriment of the complainant. However, as established in the Prosecutor’s decision – which highlights a series of contradictions in the behavior and statements of the main witness, who was also the representative of the yacht’s managing company – the alleged victim failed to file a complaint within the three-month legal deadline, despite being aware of the alleged offenses and the individuals involved. Due to published articles and interviews given to the press by the above-mentioned main witness – which were submitted by the accused (our client) – it became clear that the witness had informed the complainant company of the alleged criminal acts and the persons involved long before the date it claimed as the point it became aware of them.
Key passages from the decision include: “Therefore, by no later than December of the year …, Mr. … had made available to the complainant all the information and material he possessed regarding the case. In exchange for his cooperation, the complainant not only chose not to include him among the accused, but also paid him an unspecified sum of money. {…}Hence, as of December of the year …, the complainant had full, clear, and specific knowledge of the factual circumstances and had formed a complete opinion regarding the actions of the accused and Mr. {…}, while also being aware of the identity of the alleged perpetrators and accomplices, i.e., the accused and Mr. {…}.Consequently, the criminal complaint dated 25.4.2024, which was submitted to us on 30.4.2024, was not filed within the legal deadline.”
Under Greek criminal law, for certain offenses explicitly defined by law, criminal prosecution is not initiated ex officio but requires the submission of a complaint by the victim. This complaint must be filed within three (3) months from the date the victim became aware both of the act and the identity of the perpetrator. If this deadline passes without action, the criminal liability is permanently extinguished, and any subsequent complaint is inadmissible, resulting in the termination of the criminal proceedings.
Read all the court rulings