A three-justice Athens first instance court on Friday handed down a three-year suspended sentence against the former head of a major public Athens hospital’s cardiology ward for demanding an “under-the-table” payment.
The physician was arrested last September in possession of 3,000 euros in marked bills.
The wife of one of the man’s patients at the Ippokrateio Hospital in central Athens first contacted authorities when the now convicted doctor demanded the sum in order to schedule a heart operation for her husband.
The justices found the man guilty of demanding a bribery, before also handing down a 30,000-euro fine.
Conditions of the suspended sentence, pending appeal, are a restriction on leaving the country and a bond of 20,000 euros, which must be paid until Monday, otherwise he will be re-arrested.
Demanding payment for public health services in Greece, long-known as “fakelaki”, as the latter in Greek means “small envelope”, is illegal albeit not an uncommon practice. Although vilified only few such instances make it to the courts every year.
In his defense, the physician claimed that he only asked for a “bonus” after the successful operation in order to treat the surgeons and nursing staff.
