Two Greek soldiers held in Turkey could face 2 years in prison

The two Greek soldiers could be facing two years in prison after they were denied their freedom for the fifth time in a row, as their appeal was rejected by the competent Turkish prosecutor.

The attorneys of lieutenant Angelos Mitretodis and sergeant Dimitris Kouklatzis filed an appeal for their release which was rejected by the judge who said: “there was a strong suspicion of the two entering a prohibited military zone”.

The two Greeks have been imprisoned in a maximum security prison in the Turkish city of Adrianople since March 2.
Angelos Mitredodis told the judge he did not intend to commit a crime, while sergeant Kouklatzis followed a similar line of defence, saying he also had no intention of trespassing, according to a report by Skai TV.

As the Greek TV station reported, the judge said that due to the fact that the minimum sentence for the specific crime was two years, it was deemed necessary that their incarceration continued.

Meanwhile, the state of emergency is expected to be lifted today, raising hopes that the two soldiers cannot be held in prison without being formally charged with specific crimes.