The Greek government announced yesterday an investigation for possible links between the police and Golden Dawn, while two high ranking police officers, Yiannis Dikopoulos, inspector general of the police in southern Greece, and Apostolos Kaskanis, general police director of Central Greece offered their resignations.
Both men stated that they were resigning for personal reasons, but their departure is being widely interpreted as being related to revelations into the activities of the neo- nazi party.
The chief of police in Greece has suspended four officers and launched a sworn administrative enquiry into an incident on September 20 in Halkida, in Evia. The officers are accused of failing to intervene at the sight of Golden Dawn members transporting weapons – namely batons, shields and helmets – into the local party offices, which is located a few hundred meters from the police station. The four officers are also accused of failing to inform their superiors.
Also, the Public Order Minister Nikos Dendias has also ordered the police’s internal affairs division to investigate whether the force’s ranks have been infiltrated by Golden Dawn.
Pavlos Fyssas’s stabbing by a supporter of the Golden Dawn party last week revived accusations that police were turning a blind eye to its activities or had even been infiltrated by it.