Council of State rejects Koufodinas appeal to halt transfer

The Council of State on Wednesday rejected an appeal by convicted terrorist Dimitris Koufodinas to postpone his planned transfer to the maximum-security Domokos Prison.

The country’s highest administrative court threw out the motion on the grounds that it is not the competent authority to decide on the issue, which comes under the purview of the country’s criminal courts.

Koufodinas has resisted his transfer to Domokos in central Greece, citing legislation that his lawyers argue would have him transferred back to the capital’s Korydallos Prison, where he served the first stint of his 11 life sentences, plus 25 years.

The General Secretariat for Anti-Crime policy says that this legislation does not apply in this particular case, as Korydallos has been designated a pre-trial penitentiary and does not have the security features required for people convicted of serious crimes such as terrorism.

The November 17 assassin had been on hunger strike for several weeks in protest at his planned transfer. He called it off last weekend.