Police were told to stand back at Fyssas murder, witnesses tell court

Policemen who were at the scene when anti-fascist rapper Pavlos Fyssas was stabbed to death by Golden Dawn member Giorgos Roupakias in 2013 were ordered not to intervene, an Athens court heard on Thursday.

One of the eight members of the DIAS motorcycle-riding squad that witnessed a gang of around 50 Golden Dawn supporters chasing Fyssas and his friends in the suburb of Keratsini, near Piraeus, told the court trying the neo-Nazi party’s leadership that their superiors had told them to steer clear of trouble.

“We informed the base,” said the officer who arrested Roupakias. “The orders we received were to keep our distance and keep giving them a picture of what was going on.”

The officer, however, argued that there was little the policemen present could have done even if they had received orders to intervene.

“When you see 50 people with bats and helmets, you do not get involved,” he said. “Eight people cannot take on 50.”

The policeman said that he saw a “bunch” of people surround Fyssas, which is when officers intervened. However, the rapper had been stabbed by Roupakias by that point. The witness told the court that he did not see any marks or bruises on the perpetrator.

“He was not hurt,” said the officer. “He was good. Maybe he knew a martial art or boxing.”