The assurance “I’m here with Kimberly, I’m taking care of it” was given by former minister and president of the Independent Greeks, Panos Kammenos, to one of the main defendants in the Cretan mafia case. According to a wiretap recorded by the police, the defendant assured Kammenos that Archimandrite Melchisedek—on whose behalf he was intervening to be elected Bishop of Kydonia and Apokoronas—already had favor “from the American base,” while Kammenos replied that if the election depended on the “American factor,” then “he controlled it completely.”

However, in a communication with the former minister, the TV show Power Talk and presenter Tatiana Stefanidou reported that Kammenos admitted he had the conversation with the defendant. He said he knew the person from before “from ND [New Democracy],” agreed verbally that he would help because he had some contacts, but in the end, he did nothing and did not even answer the defendant’s phone calls.

Listen to the audio recording:

The Controversial Dialogue with the Alleged Mafia Leader

Mafia Leader: There’s a bishop in Chania… he’s an archimandrite.

Panos Kammenos: Yes.

Mafia Leader: He’s our man and he’s running to become bishop because the previous one died, but he wasn’t in the lists. It will happen in October by 99% because the Patriarchate wants it.

Panos Kammenos: Yes.

Mafia Leader: The man is a very close friend of mine. I’ve told him about you. I tell him, “Brother, I was with Kammenos. He can support you. Kammenos wants it, and the American base wants it because the area is in Akrotiri, and even Trump himself wants him.”

Panos Kammenos: On October 10, Kimberly comes here where we control the whole system. I’m with her now, she’s beside me.

Mafia Leader: What are you saying…

Panos Kammenos: Don’t speak too much. If it depends on the Americans, I’ll take care of it.

Mafia Leader: No, it depends only on the Americans because it’s their area.

Panos Kammenos: I’m taking care of it!

What the Case File States

It is noted that the two brothers—hoteliers and alleged heads of the Cretan mafia—sought to elect “their own man” as Bishop of Kydonia and Apokoronas. According to the case file, one of the brothers directly raised the issue in a phone call with Kammenos, who assured him that “if the election depends on the American factor, it will be achieved with certainty, as I completely control it.”

According to the file, Kammenos avoided direct communication with the favored candidate, but the hotelier, reassured that Kammenos “controlled the outcome if it depended on the American factor,” sent him a written message with the details of the candidate, Archimandrite Melchisedek.

The file also describes the violation and sale of land belonging to the Holy Trinity Monastery in Chania and subsequent extortion attempts to prevent the monastery from reclaiming the 175-acre property.

Key points from the case file:

• One of the hotelier brothers, alleged head of the Cretan mafia, maintained contacts with Archimandrite Melchisedek, who aspired to be elected Bishop of Kydonia and Apokoronas in October. The hotelier asked for a portion of the sacred relics of Saint Lazarus as a “fee” for mediating the election.
• On August 12, the hotelier called Kammenos about the archimandrite, stating he was accepted by the Patriarchate, the American base in Chania, and others. He emphasized the archimandrite was a close, friendly person and asked Kammenos to have the archimandrite contact him directly, but Kammenos refused and told the hotelier to relay his assurance that “if the election depends on the American factor, it will be achieved with certainty, as I completely control it.” Minutes later, the hotelier sent a message to Kammenos with the archimandrite’s name and the phrase “for Bishop of Chania.”
• The archimandrite asked the hotelier to ensure that the former minister would pressure him directly “since actions must be taken by the end of August” and thanked him for a donation to the church.
• The file also details negotiations between the hotelier and the archimandrite over obtaining a piece of the True Cross. Melchisedek claimed he held genuine relics of saints and would give the hotelier a piece of Saint Lazarus’s relic. The hotelier asked if it was authentic or fake; Melchisedek joked and said he obtained it from a monastery abbot in Cyprus and that it was in limited quantity inside a cross. He warned that it was precious and extremely rare.
• The hotelier requested a second piece of the True Cross, and Melchisedek explained that the remaining quantity was minimal and obtained through mediation in the Patriarchate.