Greek Prosecutors Widen Criminal Probe into Deadly Train Crash

Photo: People lght candles in honor of the 57 victims of Greece's deadliest train crash, during a protest in front of Parliament in Athens, Greece, 03 March 2023. The collision between a passenger train traveling north and a freight train traveling south on the same line occurred on 28 February night. EPA-EFE/GEORGE VITSARAS

The government, facing an election in the first half of this year, has blamed human error, and a 59-year-old station master has been remanded in custody accused of placing two trains running in opposite directions on the same track.

But amid widespread public anger over how such a tragedy could have occurred, the head of the Larissa Appeals Court Prosecutors' Office, Stamatis Daskalopoulos, has requested an investigation into possible criminal wrongdoing that may have led to the collision between a passenger train travelling from Athens to Thessaloniki and a freight train at the entrance to the Tempi Valley, causing carriages to derail and burst into flame.

Citing "enormous and complex responsibilities arising from the evidence", Daskalopoulos said an investigation was required into the "participation of other persons in the crime of the Criminal Code (291 Transportation Distribution) or the context of the commitment of other related criminal crimes," Greek newspaper Kathimerini reported on Tuesday.

The Athens Macedonia News Agency reported that the probe would focus on staff of the Hellenic Railways, rail inspectors and others "responsible for the supervision and regulation of the rail network on a particularly busy day."

Of the 57 victims, two have still to be identified; 38 passengers remain in hospital, including seven in intensive care.

A separate investigation has been launched by the Economic...