ATHENS – A former special guard police officer convicted of the 2008 shooting death of a 15-year-old that set off two weeks of rioting in the Greep capital was ordered released from jail – for a second time after having been sent back.

Epaminondas Korkoneas had been initially given a life sentence for the shooting death of 15-year-old Alexandros Grigoropoulos in the anarchist stronghold of Exarchia, prompting more fury.

But in July 2019, an appeals court said since he hadn’t committed any crimes before killing the boy that it was reason enough to release him under a leniency law passed by the then-ruling Radical Left SYRIZA.

Ironically, the Leftists have a hard-core element of terrorist and anarchist sympathizers and those opposed to the police but Korkoneas benefited from the law that downgraded many felonies to misdemeanors and opened jails.

After his 2019 release, Supreme Court prosecutor Vassilis Pliotas challenged the ruling and a high court plenary said Korkoneas’ previous clean record wasnt a mitigating reason for leniency and he went back to prison in March 2022, noted Kathimerini, but it wasn’t said when he will be out again.