With tensions in Vorizia still not abated from last Saturday’s savage killing, the government today announces additional initiatives both in the context of gun violence and the intensification of the police presence in Crete. According to relevant sources, the existing legal framework is already strict, but some further interventions can be made, while Michalis Chrysochoidis will also develop the upgraded police planning for the island.

The Minister of Citizen Protection is expected to hold a press conference at 11:00 at the Heraklion Police Directorate. A capital police initiative will be the establishment of a sub-directorate of the “Greek FBI” in Crete, along the lines of Thessaloniki. To his interlocutors, Michalis Chrysochoidis, who is experienced in Crete, acknowledges that homicides are not higher than in the rest of Greece, but recent events are a ringing bell for the organized state.

In fact, to demonstrate that Crete is no exception, the government says that the “Greek FBI” in one year has identified and tracked down more than 130 major criminal organizations, identified more than 2,500 perpetrators and arrested 1,800 of them. In this case, we are talking about serious felonies, and 600 criminals have already been taken into custody.

He will also be tasked with announcing further initiatives on legal and illegal gun ownership. Reportedly on the table is-with an escalation-the “cutting” of suspensions for crimes related to illegal gun possession and going to jail between first and second degree for someone convicted of a related offense.

Based on the criminal framework, there is already an escalation and several gun possession cases are being treated as felonies. Also on the table is a proposal for changes to the framework for obtaining a legal licence to carry a firearm. Also, according to government officials, this morning the Minister of Education Sofia Zacharaki will also make a statement on the immediate actions taken and the plan to support children, families and teachers in Vorizia and Zaros from now on.

Mitsotakis’ message and the nod to PASOK

According to reports, Kyriakos Mitsotakis is also expected to mention the issue in his Sunday post, as he too traces his origins to Crete and these incidents are not unknown to him.

The government acknowledges as extremely positive the fact that the leader of the opposition Nikos Androulakis is also moving in the same context and has in turn taken initiatives for contacts with island bodies since Monday. In this context, government officials point out that all political forces should be on the same page and an open dialogue should take place in order to make workable decisions, regardless of who is the next or the next government. In this context, a new operation of consultation with PASOK and the island’s stakeholders should not be ruled out from next week.