Former Greek finance minister George Papaconstantinou, indicted two months ago by Parliament over his handing of a list of 2,062 Greeks with $1.95 billion in secret Swiss bank accounts, will find out soon whether he will have go to to court over the charges.
The newspaper Kathimerini said that a judicial council is reportedly close to deciding whether he should be prosecuted for breach of duty and allegations of tampering with the list, from which the names of three of his relatives were erased.
He has denied any wrongdoing over the so-called Lagarde List, named for former French finance minister Christine Lagarde who gave it to him in 2010. He said it vanished.
The key issue expected to determine whether Papaconstantinou goes to trial is whether any of the charges he faces – breach of faith, violation of duty and doctoring a document – have expired under the statute of limitations.
The fact that two general elections were held last year – in May and June – could theoretically save Papaconstantinou as the Constitution dictates that offenses allegedly committed by former ministers expire if two Parliaments have served since the alleged offense was committed.
Many legal experts counter, however, that the fact Parliament convened for a day after the inconclusive May polls should not be counted.
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