A soft-spoken 83-year-old Greek
Orthodox Priest has dedicated his life to an unusual quest: buying
prison inmates their freedom. Gervasios Raptopoulos has taken advantage
of a quirk in the Greek justice system which enables people jailed for
minor offenses to walk free by paying off a fine.
The rule only applies
to people convicted of offences that carry a maximum five-year sentence
and is calculated at five euros per day, on average. People serving time
for crimes such as petty fraud, bodily harm, weapons possession,
illegal logging, resisting arrest and minor drugs offences fall into
this category. However finding sufficient funds to buy a way out is
typically only a luxury the rich can afford.
Raptopoulos has helped
more than 15,000 convicts secure their freedom over nearly four decades,
according to records kept by his charity. His funds come from private
donations but the on-going Greek financial crisis is putting a strain on
the coffers. "Where people would offer 100 euros ($135), they now give
50 ($67).
But that doesn't stop us," he said.
Father Gervasios holds up a letter, in Arabic, copies of which are
handed out to all prisoners his charity frees, in their own language,
explaining why they receive the help in the northern port city of
Thessaloniki.
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