A Greek judge has convicted and sentenced a dead man, despite the defence lawyer explaining that his client had already died.
A Greek judge has convicted and sentenced a dead man, despite the defence lawyer explaining that his client had already died.
The deceased was convicted of stealing electricity from a power company, for which he received a six-month suspended jail sentence, despite his defence lawyer telling the Thessaloniki court his client was dead.
Police records showed that the 46 year old died on 8 April, but his lawyer, Christos Bakelas, was not told until the day prior to the trial.
Bakelas asked that the trial be deferred until he could deliver a death certificate, but the court refused and convicted the man in absentia, The Guardian reported.
The unemployed father of three was charged after activists reconnected his power, which had previously been cut off by the electricity company due to unpaid bills.
Bakelas said he was astonished by the court’s decision and that he had not experienced anything like it in his 25 years as a lawyer.
