November 17 convict seeks conditional release from prison citing health reasons

A convicted November 17 killer has submitted a request for his conditional release from prison citing health problems.

Savvas Xiros, who was handed down five life sentences for his key role in the terrorist group November 17, was seriously injured in June 2002 after a bomb went off prematurely in his hands at the port of Piraeus.

The Greek law allows prisoners with severe disabilities to be released from prison, under conditions.

In his petition, 55-year-old Xiros outlines his health problems, with his lawyer Anny Paparousou stating that he has a 98 percent disability.

She says the claim is supported by a health certificate issued by the state’s Disability Certification Centre, adding that, based on the law, Xiros’s release “is a matter of days.”

The same legislation was cited by a former power firm executive who was sentenced to 21 months in prison in 2017 for his involvement in an embezzlement scam and submitted forged health certificates to secure his release. He was eventually rearrested when the forgery was discovered.

Xiros’s arrest led to the dismantling of the terrorist group that  has killed 23 people, among them US, British and Turkish diplomats.