New Trial for Menis Koumandareas' Murderers 11 Years Later

Eleven years after the murder of writer Menis Koumandareas, the two Romanian men convicted of the crime will be retried. The Supreme Court overturned the previous appellate court decision that had granted mitigating circumstances to the defendants.

Initially, the two men were sentenced to life imprisonment, but the appellate court reduced the sentence to 15 years and 18 months, recognizing the mitigating circumstance of a clean criminal record. This decision was overturned by the Supreme Court due to a lack of sufficient justification.

The murder of Menis Koumandareas was discovered on December 6, 2014, when he was found dead in his apartment in Kypseli. The forensic report indicated that the death was caused by abdominal and head injuries, as well as strangulation.

According to the Supreme Court's decision, the appellate court did not adequately justify the recognition of the mitigating circumstance, as the murder was not an "extremely exceptional and occasional behavior" but indicative of the defendants' personality and lack of respect for legal rights.

The new trial will determine whether the mitigating circumstance was correctly granted to the two convicts, who are serving their sentences in Trikala Prison.