The controversial head of Greece's anti-corruption prosecutor's office has been charged with one felony and five misdemeanor counts, in relation to her now three-year-long investigation into alleged Novartis kickbacks in the country, a probe that initially implicated 10 current and former office-holders but which quickly fizzled out without touching on possible bribes to physicians and hospital administrators.
The charges against top prosecutor Eleni Touloupaki were filed by the Athens prosecutor's office, and following the conclusion of two separate investigations by two supreme court prosecutors.
The most egregious charge against Touloupaki is the offense of abuse of power, with misdemeanor counts including dereliction of duty and providing false certifications.
The next step, as per Greece's judicial system, is for the indictment to be transferred to an investigating magistrate, who will begin taking testimony.
The development comes a day after a majority of members of a Parliamentary committee of inquiry recommended that charges be filed against former alternate justice minister Dimitris Papaggelopoulos, who has faced allegations that he established and oversaw a judicial conspiracy aimed at sullying political opponents of the previous leftist SYRIZA government.
