Bench warrant against protected witness said to be in line with legal principle

The special parliamentary committee inquiring into the merit of claims of political interference in the Novartis bribery case is entitled to issue a bench warrant against a protected witness that failed to present himself on Tuesday afternoon at a hearing scheduled at the Athens police headquarters, sources inside the prosecutor’s office told Kathimerini on Wednesday.

Issuing a witness bench warrant against the witness, who is known by the name Maximos Sarafis, would be in line with legal principle, the source said.

According to the same source, however, the law does not stipulate penal repercussions for witnesses that fail to show up at the stage of preliminary investigation.

The demand for the forced presence of the witness had been signed only by the committee members of New Democracy and Movement for Change (KINAL), as the other parties disagreed with the process.