Shipowner rebuffs MP bribery claims

Shipowner Andreas Martinos on Wednesday rebuffed reports suggesting he was among a group of businessmen gathering cash to bribe MPs into backing the government’s presidential candidate.

According to sources, Martinos dismissed allegations that he and businessman Sokratis Kokkalis had discussed the creation of a fund to buy MPs’ votes at their children’s wedding as “flights of fantasy.”

Kokkalis has also been called to testify in a probe which is being carried out by Panayiotis Panayiotopoulos on the basis of the reports in the Kontra News daily. Government spokeswoman Sofia Voultepsi also testified on Wednesday before condemning “those who, with groundless allegations and no evidence, poison political life.”