Fugitive found in apartment linked to fellow inmate

A 43-year-old convicted armed robber who absconded from the Greek capital’s Korydallos Prison while on educational leave last week was traced to an apartment in the Piraeus suburb of Kokkinia (Nikaia) rented by the girlfriend of one of his fellow inmates. 

Vassilis Dimakis, who is serving a sentence of 44 years for multiple armed robberies, illegal gun possession and forgery, was arrested on Wednesday after being on the run since last Thursday, when he cut off his ankle monitor to avoid detection. 

The device was also found in Kokkinia, along with two cellphones used by the convict, who was later traced to the apartment on Tuesday night. 

Dimakis gained national prominence in 2018 after going on an extended hunger strike in demand of the right to attend university. He is currently enrolled at Athens University. 

In a letter to the website 2020mag.gr, he said he absconded to protest Korydallos Prison’s “incompetent administration” and alleged violations of inmates’ rights.