After successive (unofficial) attempts to find tangible evidence for the involvement of 37-year-old inmate F.T. in a series of significant bombing cases, the latest raid by the Directorate for Internal Security (DAISE) at the Nigrita Detention Center may prove to be the most decisive in providing a series of answers. On Tuesday (23/9), it became known that officers from the Northern Greece Subdivision of the “Greek FBI” conducted another raid at Nigrita prison, and this time the findings had a more… practical character compared to what had been revealed during previous raids.
Handwritten notes and eight USB sticks, as well as two SIM cards were found, among other items, in the 37-year-old’s belongings (similar searches were conducted on four other suspects), and now the Hellenic Police express hope that the evidence needed to “connect” several shocking attack cases is in their hands. While DAISE has recorded significant successes since its establishment, there remains a gap in identifying those responsible for various bombing attacks.
Read: Police: Raid on Nigrita Prison cells in Serres, USB sticks and notes confiscated
Nigrita Prison raid: Cases involving the “left-handed robber” – USB stick holds the key
The “left-handed robber,” as F.T.’s nickname suggests, given to him by the media after an armed robbery years ago at a Piraeus Bank branch, remains “by default” on the list of main suspects, despite periodic attempts by him or his associates to “muddy the waters” by presenting other willing “fathers” of the bombing attacks. We recall that he has essentially been attributed with sending an explosive package to the office of a high-ranking prosecutor in Thessaloniki, as well as the explosion outside a National Bank branch, with the tragic toll of the death of a 39-year-old former colleague.
It is not coincidental that his name was connected as a working hypothesis to the attacks on the house of the president of Greek correctional officers in Thessaloniki, as well as to the dynamite thrown in the surrounding area of journalist Giannis Pretenteris’ house.
Regardless of any (and perhaps not so convincing) claims of responsibility for the above attacks, DAISE officials sought to exclude or confirm the 37-year-old’s involvement through circumstantial evidence, hence the tight surveillance around him in recent weeks, from his dramatic trial onwards.
Now, the findings from this raid could constitute the critical thread for a series of cases that will clarify the situation. And perhaps the answer to many questions lies hidden in the USB sticks that were located, as well as in the notes, since this is the first time material has been found that could provide a lot (or nothing) on an informational level. This time, however, the timing for the new raid was the most appropriate compared to previous occasions, and the Information and Special Operations Department of the Northern Greece Anti-Terrorism Division played a decisive role in this, bringing to light information from reliable sources.
