The trial of Golden Dawn MPs and members resumed on Tuesday with the testimony of Panayiotis Fyssas, the father of the anti-fascist rapper Pavlos Fyssas who was stabbed to death two years ago by a member of the neo-Nazi party in Keratsini, west of Athens.

The testimony took place after recent comments made by Golden Dawn leader Nikos Michaloliakos who assumed “political responsibility” for the killing. “I am the father of murdered Pavlos Fyssas,” said the murdered rapper’s father, beginning his testimony.

“(Giorgos) Roupakias is a professional hitman, with a professional strike,” said Fyssas. “He turned the knife into my son’s wound so that he could die from an internal (blood) haemorrage.”

The father refered to his son’s music with lyrics that bothered Golden Dawn members, but he stressed that they had orders from above when making the hit against his son.

“My brother called me on the telephone and told me to head to Tsaldari Street, they had stabbed the boy,” he said. “When I arrived there was a great deal of movement. I heard sirens. I saw Chryssa (the rapper’s partner) on the pavement and Pvlos with his legs overturned. My mind immediately went to Golden Dawn because his songs bothered them.”

The father pointed out that Chryssa was yelling at a police man who had not rushed to help when she had called him. Later, she told the father that around 60 people had approached Pavlos and the people sitting at Koralli cafetaria watching a football match. They were swearing without Fyssas knowing why.

Fyssas’ father, the first defence witness, testified that the police appeared to be on the side of Golden Dawn members from the video of the incident that he saw. “My query is why they weren’t on the side of the kids, to protect them,” says Fyssas.

Speaking of his son, he said that members of Golden Dawn were angered by the lyrics of songs that condemned fascism. “Roupakias had the style of a swaggering Greek who wants to ‘save’ his country and swears,” said the father. “He believes that the ‘baddies’ should die. He thinks that he has achieved something. They told me that at the time, he had a look taht seemed to say: ‘That’s how I kill!’ And there are times, here, that he has the same look!”

Despite Roupakias involvement, Fyssas said taht there were 20 to 60 members of Golden Dawn that surrounded his son showing that it was an organized hit. “He did not do it alone, he had orders,” said the father.