Approximately two years after the state crime off the coast of Pylos, which cost the lives of more than 600 people, 17 members of the Hellenic Coast Guard (HCG), including some high-ranking officers and the then-commandant of the force\u2014who monitored the Adriana\u2019s course for over 15 hours without initiating a rescue operation\u2014have been referred to a formal judicial investigation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It should be noted that the original case file, compiled by the competent prosecutor, only referred the captain and crew of the PPLS 920 vessel, as well as the members of the Special Missions Unit (KEA) aboard, for prosecution. This sparked strong reactions from lawyers representing survivors and victims of the Pylos shipwreck<\/a>, as well as from political and humanitarian organizations. Following the completion of an inquiry\u00a0by the Greek Ombudsman<\/a> and the submission of their findings to the Naval Court Prosecutor\u2019s Office of Piraeus, the head prosecutor ordered a supplementary investigation into potential criminal liabilities of additional and higher-ranking Coast Guard officers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Following the completion of this supplementary preliminary examination, the Naval Court Prosecutor brought criminal charges and ordered a full investigation:<\/p>\n\n\n\n Additionally, criminal charges were filed against the then- commandant of the Coast Guard, the supervisor of the operations center (Joint Rescue Coordination Center \u2013 JRCC), two other officers in charge of monitoring, and all aforementioned members of the PPLS crew for exposing others to danger\u2014a legal obligation to rescue those in need and for leaving them helpless, which resulted in the deaths of at least 82 people.<\/p>\n\n\n\n However, the case file excludes today\u2019s Coast Guard Commandant Tryfon Kontizas and other officers involved in managing the incident. It is noteworthy that Mr. Kontizas, who at the time of the incident served as Director of the HCG\u2019s Security and Policing Division with direct responsibilities in the operation on the day of the shipwreck, was promoted to Commandant of the Coast Guard in March 2025, even while potential criminal liabilities on his part were still under investigation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n
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