Families of victims of the Tempi train tragedy have submitted new requests for the exhumation of their children’s remains for toxicological tests, following the rejection of earlier appeals by a senior appellate judge.
The initial rejection argued there was no evidence of illegal cargo that could have caused the deadly fire in the crash. The matter was instead referred to a local prosecutor, but only for DNA identification purposes, excluding broader forensic examinations.
One of the petitioners, Pavlos Aslanidis, renewed his request for biochemical tests on the remains of his son, Dimitris. His application also sought the identification of five additional body fragments, out of eight in total, that have not yet been matched. Notably, his legal counsel did not raise the issue of illegal cargo in any of the filings, instead stressing the family’s pursuit of the truth about their son’s death.
Similarly, Panos Rouci, now on the sixteenth day of a hunger strike, has submitted a new exhumation request through his lawyer. The family is pressing for further examinations on the remains of their son, Denni. Speaking from the courthouse in Larissa, his lawyer expressed the family’s concern that action might be taken regarding their son’s remains without their knowledge.
