The hearing at the Athens Mixed Jury Court continued with testimony from a well-known actress who has accused the 43-year-old director and actor of attempted rape. The witness, sister of the accuser, had maintained a long-term relationship with the defendant. As she testified, after this relationship ended in 2015, her sister revealed to her that she had been abused by the accused. “The defendant was a trusted person in our home, he was raping her and that was the reason she was in such bad shape…” the witness said, adding that when her sister made this confession to her, she panicked and was shocked. Additionally, the witness revealed that she contacted the defendant who did not deny anything. “He said ‘you know how I am, I liked her body. How can someone do this…’ He didn’t deny anything” she stated in her testimony.
“He has destroyed us, we’re trying to forget”
The witness had also accused the defendant of rape but was acquitted by court ruling. “I thought that what happened to me only happened to me…” she said, maintaining that the 43-year-old was manipulative and used unorthodox teaching methods, but as the witness emphasized, she never realized he had harassed her minor sister as she believed he had taken on a brotherly role. “These are things we’ve been trying to forget for so many years because he has destroyed us” the witness stressed emotionally, noting that she is unable to remember details from the abuse she has reported. As she explained, after the revelations, she began discussing with friends and received information about 10-15 girls.
Renowned director Yorgos Lanthimos was also present in the courtroom, whose wife is a witness in the case. The trial continues.
