Argyris Saliarelis may have vanished from the limelight since his glory days nearly 35 years ago when, thanks to Koskotas, he found himself at the helm of Olympiacos FC’s shareholder structure, but much has happened since then.

The so-called “King of Rubies” may have been forgotten by most, but not by the… auctioneers. Four years ago, he reappeared in the news when a 6.7-acre plot of his in Aegina went under the hammer, which he ultimately lost.

However, his troubles didn’t end there. As revealed by THEMA, another auction is set for July 16, 2025. This time, it concerns a 15-acre estate in Aegina, which includes a large residence and auxiliary buildings.

The auction for the 15-acre plot with the villa in Aegina is scheduled for July 16, with a starting bid of €1,657,000.

The New Auction

According to information available to THEMA, the new auction targets the company ARSAL S.A. (A. Saliarelis Agricultural, Commercial, Real Estate, and Tourism Enterprises). The starting bid has been set at €1,657,000.

Interestingly, the party initiating the auction is businessman Panagiotis Kozaris, the father-in-law of singer and actor Panos Mouzourakis. It is worth noting that the well-known artist married pharmacist Marilou Kozari on May 27, 2023, with their wedding celebration for 500 guests held at the luxurious Saliarelis Tower in Aegina.

According to the relevant document, the auction is being pursued based on a payment order issued by the Athens Single-Member Court of First Instance on June 26, 2024. The debt amounts to €391,531.81, with the initiating party reserving the right to collect the entire sum, including interest and execution expenses, until full repayment.

The auction involves full ownership of an agricultural plot located in the “Plakakia – Akrotiri” area of the Aegina municipal region, outside the city plan and zone. The plot spans 15,030 square meters, is buildable, and includes a residence and auxiliary buildings.

Businessman Panagiotis Kozaris is the initiating party. Pictured with his daughter Marilou on her wedding day to singer Panos Mouzourakis, with the reception held at the Saliarelis villa in Aegina.

Specifically, the property includes a house with a basement of 185 square meters, a ground floor with five rooms, a kitchen, and a WC totaling 200 square meters, and a first floor with four rooms, an office, and a wine cellar of 185 square meters, as well as auxiliary buildings totaling 109 square meters. The plot borders neighboring properties owned by Argyris Saliarelis and others named Katsarou, Mavrantonis, Kalonychtis, as well as a road leading to Aegina.

The property carries several liens, specifically:

• A mortgage in favor of the Hellenic State for 150 million drachmas, registered on May 17, 1994.
• Compulsory seizure initiated by D.X. for 5,214,306 drachmas, registered on March 22, 1994, with subsequent auction declarations noted on June 7, 1995, for 15,868,289 drachmas, and on October 24, 1996, for 10,260,460 drachmas.
• A conservatory seizure by D.X. for 50 million drachmas, registered on February 7, 1996.
• Compulsory seizure initiated by the Municipality of Aegina for €14,157.22, registered on December 23, 2013.
• Compulsory seizure initiated by Panagiotis Kozaris for €391,531.81, registered on December 13, 2024.

Of course, as with all auctions, there is the possibility of postponement or cancellation before the scheduled date, should compromise negotiations or legal objections take place.

The property belongs to ARSAL S.A., where Argyris Saliarelis is the sole shareholder. Established in 1985 and headquartered on Filonos Street in Piraeus, the company initially aimed to cultivate pistachio trees for local and international markets, engage in real estate transactions, build constructions, operate hotels, conduct shipping activities, and import raw materials.

The company has reported zero revenue in recent years, while Saliarelis himself reportedly resides at the Saliarelis Tower in Aegina.

Receptions and the First Auction
For years, the Saliarelis Tower has been used for social events such as weddings and baptisms. The property is one of Aegina’s most notable landmarks. Before becoming known as Saliarelis Tower, it was called Zaimis or Benizelos Tower, built in the late 19th century. The two-story building with semi-basement spaces, a wooden tiled roof, and historical significance served as a summer residence for Prime Minister Alexandros Zaimis and the Benizelos family. It was declared a preserved monument in 1985 by the Ministry of Culture.

Argyris Saliarelis and ARSAL S.A. have faced consecutive auctions since October 2019, including a 6,675-square-meter agricultural plot with a warehouse and well in the “Fanari or Plakakia” area of Aegina. The starting bid initially set at €700,000 eventually dropped to €500,000 after several failed attempts, with the property ultimately selling for €562,000 on December 8, 2021.

The new reduced starting price was determined by the Piraeus Single-Member Court of First Instance on July 28, 2021, following objections delayed by the pandemic. Petitioners requested the price drop to €350,000, while Saliarelis argued for a minimum of €750,000–850,000, citing the market value as €1.2 million and claiming interest from potential buyers.

The court decision noted, “The above claim is not deemed credible as it is not supported by any recent comparative data, nor has the defendant submitted or referenced an appraisal of the seized property’s market value by a certified appraiser.” Thus, the court set the starting price at €500,000.

Life and… Politics

Argyris Saliarelis “stormed” into the scene like a whirlwind when he succeeded Koskotas at the helm of Olympiacos in 1988, a position he managed to hold for nearly four years. At that time, he was said to have significant wealth in Africa, particularly in Kenya, which he had acquired through the mining and trade of precious stones, earning him the nickname “King of Rubies,” a title that followed him throughout his journey. This journey was marked by adventurous situations and absurd events.

Saliarelis was accused of helping Koskotas escape with his private Learjet, initially to Brazil and then to the U.S., where he was arrested. Although these events took place during the “succession” at Olympiacos, leading to Saliarelis’ pretrial detention, he eventually assumed control of the historic club after appealing to the First Instance Court. It is worth recalling that the decision of the First Instance Court, where he presented a private agreement that seemed to show Koskotas transferring the majority of shares to him—something that Koskotas himself denied—was challenged unsuccessfully by the late Miltiadis Marinakis, father of the current president of Olympiacos, and by former vice-president Nikos Efthymiou.

For his role in Koskotas’ escape, he was sentenced to 10 years in prison in 1993, though he served about half of his sentence. However, his life and actions at Olympiacos left a lasting legacy. From the grand reception at his Tower in Aegina on the occasion of the Olympiacos-AEK derby for the championship in 1989, which turned out to be unlucky as Olympiacos lost, to the high-profile transfers like Oleg Protasov, Yuri Savichev, Gennady Litovtshenko, Vassilis Karapialis, and coach Oleg Blokhin, all the way to the historic conflict with the “Gate 7” fans.

A relationship that went from… love to hate. In February 1989, during the Olympiacos-Athinaikos match, a group of fans stormed the field chasing players and the referee. At that time, Saliarelis had called them “scientists.” “The team’s fans are educated people, scientists, they just lost their cool with what they were seeing,” he had said on the sidelines of the dramatic match. However, when the financial issues of the team began to surface, with players remaining unpaid and cheques bouncing to foreign clubs, the atmosphere shifted, and the organized fans turned into his “enemies.” In return, they “rewarded” him with the unforgettable chant about his… lost wallet in a match against Doxa Drama. This led to a “war” that culminated in the decision to install… iron gates at “Gate 7.”

Unforgettable, however, were also the slaps Saliarelis gave to an ERT cameraman and, later, during a trial, to the late publisher of the newspaper “Eleftheri Ora,” Grigoris Michalopoulos.

The Fall and the Courts

The end of his tumultuous presidency at Olympiacos in March 1992 was followed by various adventures, with his name being involved in cases of fraud, illegal possession of firearms, counterfeit banknotes, simple bodily harm, and insult. In 2013, he was involved in an arson case after a businessman from Aegina, who ran a car rental company, accused him and another businessman of trying to destroy him by setting fire to seven cars from his company.

The first-instance court sentenced him to 9 years in prison, but after years, in May 2021, the Piraeus Mixed Jury Court acquitted him with a 4-3 vote, and with the prosecutor making a recommendation for acquittal. After that, Argyris Saliarelis disappeared from the public eye until he was “knocked on the door” by the auctions…