An 18-year-old man was charged on Sunday with the near-fatal shooting of a police officer with a flare gun on Thursday. The 31-year-old officer is currently hospitalized in critical condition.
Police said the suspect was among 424 individuals detained after a top-flight volleyball game outside the Renti venue, as police took fingerprints and DNA samples as well as conducting gunpowder residue tests to find the perpetrator.
According to media reports, the teen suspect claimed he was given the loaded flare gun by an unknown man wearing a ski mask and told to fire it at the police. He also said the same man mustered other young fans to attack police outside the indoor arena where the volleyball game was taking place.
Police officer in critical condition
The 31-year-old police officer is in a medically-induced coma in the ICU of a Piraeus-area hospital. According to the latest hospital announcement, “the patient remains in critical condition, hospitalized in the ICU under sedation and mechanical ventilation.”
The incident took place Thursday night during a volleyball game between Olympiacos Piraeus and Panathinaikos Athens.
According to police, hooligans came out of the indoor sports arena firing missiles, firebombs and flares directly at police officers, resulting in serious injury to one officer.
