Greek court makes shock ruling in case of wanted man James Dalamangas
A man wanted on suspicion of a fatal stabbing in Sydney more than 20 years ago will not face trial following a court ruling in Greece.
James Dalamangas is accused of murdering George Giannopoulous in 1999 before allegedly fleeing Australia.
Mr Dalamangas, now 56, was arrested on a farm in Greece last month after evading Australian authorities for 27 years.
But although Mr Dalamangas was on Interpol’s alert list, it was decided he would not be extradited back to Australia to face charges.
A Greek appeals court panel ruled this week that Mr Dalamangas remains “free under restrictive conditions”, meaning he will not be extradited to Australia.
Local media in the European country report that this is because the alleged crime falls outside the 25-year statute of limitations.
“The decision was made because the crime is statute-barred in Greece. Our allegations were accepted, especially the fact that the crime is statute-barred under Greek law,” Dalamangas’ lawyer, Giannis Apostolopoulos, was quoted by a media outlet as saying.
“Under both our country’s criminal procedure and the Greece-Australia agreement, if the crime is statute-barred in both countries, this constitutes a mandatory ground for refusing extradition.”
It was reported in Greek media outlet Tempo24 that Mr. Dalamangas had been living in the rural town of Alsos for 18 years under the name Antonis Tzimas.
In January 2024, Australian police offered a $200,000 reward for information leading to his capture; The 25-year period was approaching April of that year.
