SEX, SUICIDE AND DVDS PART II: MORE SMOKE, SOME

C O N F I D E N T I A L ATHENS 000064 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/15/2018 TAGS: PGOV GR SUBJECT: SEX, SUICIDE AND DVDS PART II: MORE SMOKE, SOME FIRE? REF: ATHENS 0023 Classified By: A/Political Counselor Jeff Hovenier for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d). -------------- SUMMARY -------------- ¶1. (C) The scandal involving former Culture Ministry Secretary General Christos Zahopoulos (reftel) continues to SIPDIS dominate headlines and television news shows throughout Greece. Lurid photos of Zahopoulos and Evi Tsekou, a former contract employee at the Culture Ministry, supposedly taken from the DVD -- or perhaps police files -- were published in a weekly newspaper; there are also public allegations that the paper's co-owner was implicated in the affair. More significantly, investigators have summoned the head of the Prime Minister's Press Office and the head of the PM's Political Office to testify in the case. The continued strength of the story is fueling increased public skepticism of the Prime Minister's anti-corruption pledges. End summary. -------------- A Story with Legs (and some other body parts) -------------- ¶2. (C) Despite the government's fervent wish to the contrary, the Zahopoulos scandal continues to dominate headlines and TV news programs. Lurid photographs of Zahopoulos and Tsekou were published in weekly sensationalist newspaper "Proto Thema," to the consternation of many. Some media outlets have identified "Proto Thema's" co-owner, Themos Anastassiadis, as the source of the DVD provided to the PM's office prior to Zahopoulos' suicide attempt. The allegations attracted greater notice when Anastassiadis was found to have recently deposited 5 million Euro into a French bank account. Anastassiadis has publicly denied that the money had anything to do with the Zahopoulos affair, adding that his annual income is 15 million Euro, and therefore it was perfectly legitimate for him to have deposited such a large sum. We have heard from media sources (and the PASOK opposition party's spokesman has openly speculated) that the Government had been investigating Anastassiadis for money laundering, and that he provided the DVD to the government to obtain a less robust investigation into his financial dealings. The Greek Special Audits Service is now investigating Anastassiadis' transactions. Meanwhile, the other "Proto Thema" co-owner has been "fired" by the paper's employees. ¶3. (U) Government spokesman Theodoros Roussopoulos confirmed that the head of the PM's press office Yannis Andrianos had been recalled by the examining magistrate to provide "supplementary evidence of vital significance." The press has reported that Andrianos has rescinded his claim of journalist-source privilege and has revealed the identity of the individual who provided the DVD to him; however, there has been no leak of whom Andrianos identified. The examining magistrate also summoned the Director of the Prime Minister's Political Office, Yannis Angelou. While the exact nature of his testimony is unknown, press reports speculated that he was asked to clarify the testimony provided by Andrianos. ¶4. (U) Finally, Zahopoulos remains in the ICU after his attempted suicide, but has come out of sedation and is reportedly responding to questions with finger movements. Theodoros Dravillis has been appointed to Zahopoulos' former position as Secretary General at the Ministry of Culture. -------------- Comment - Skepticism Growing -------------- ¶5. (C) Although the scandal has had little real impact on the Karamanlis government thus far, it has fueled public skepticism about the government and the Prime Minister's frequent pledges of a zero tolerance policy for corruption. Although both Karamanlis and PASOK leader Pappandreau took the high road at Monday's Transparency International conference here, the opposition has seized on the affair, demanding public investigation of all aspects and taking every possible opportunity to link it to what it calls a general air of corruption within the New Democracy leadership and Karamanlis' failure to take any serious steps to curb corrupt practices. The opposition also relishes pointing out that Zahopoulos is one of Karamanlis' known close confidants and that two of Karamanlis' senior advisors have had to testify before the investigating magistrate. End Comment. SPECKHARD