Couple released without restrictive conditions
A Greek police officer who was arrested in Turkey on Sunday, as well as his partner, were unconditionally released Thursday and are expected back in Greece Friday.
An administrative fine was imposed on the couple to the tune of 15,000 Turkish lira each and court costs of 10,000 lira each. The total amount of 50,000 Turkish lira is equivalent to about 3,500 euros.
The 41-year-old and his female companion were arrested on Sunday evening while returning from a day out in the city of Edirne, which is around 5 kilometers from the Greek-Turkish border. Police on the Turkish side of the border said the pair had trespassed in the no-go zone between the two countries and apprehended them for questioning, while also seizing their cellphones. The incident caused some concern in Athens that the police officer could be accused of espionage.
The 41-year-old serves at the police station in the border town of Feres in Evros, northeastern Greece, and was off duty when he and his companion made the trip to Turkey for leisure purposes.
The pair were released on Monday on the condition that they remain in Turkey for 48 hours while investigators continued studying the content of their cellphones to rule out the possibility that they contained sensitive data.
