Deutsche Bahn suspected of bribing Greek officials

Government spokesman Dimitris Tzanakopoulos said on Friday that German judicial authorities have relayed evidence to their counterparts in Greece suggesting that Greek state officials received bribes from rail firm Deutsche Bahn to influence contract decisions related to construction work at the Athens metro between 2003 and 2007. 

According to media reports, around 370,000 euros was paid in bribes. Deutsche Bahn was part of a consortium with Thales, Lahmeyer and OMEK to contracted to supervise rail works for the Athens metro. 

Tzanakopoulos said the government is sticking to its pledge to mete out justice and denounced opposition New Democracy and PASOK, whose policies, he said, brought the country to the brink of disaster. 

He also said the submission of a proposal by ND for the formation of an investigative committee to probe whether former health ministers Panayiotis Kouroublis and Andreas Xanthos, as well as Alternate Health Minister Pavlos Polakis, are guilty of breaches of faith in 2015 and 2016 was a “diversionary tactic.”