omid was declared innocent, after spending 4 years in prison

On the 8th of June, Omid took the stand before the Three-Member Appeals Court of the Dodecanese in Rhodes, to defend his innocence against the smuggling charges he was facing.

TRIAL PROCEEDINGS

HRLP lawyer, Dimitris Choulis, first represented Omid on November 9, 2023, during his First Instance hearing. Initially facing up to 465 years in prison, Omid was sentenced to 66 years and 6 months, filing for an appeal on the same day.

After more than 2,5 years later, on June 8th, 2026 HRLP lawyer Dimitris Choulis together with HRLP partner Alexis Georgoulis, defended Omid before the Three-Member Appeals Court of the Dodecanese, demanding his acquittal based on two primary defense claims:

a) The Greek courts lacked jurisdiction to try Omid's case because the arrest had taken place outside Greek territorial waters and because the transported persons had intended to travel to Italy, rather than Greece.

b) The defendant is an asylum seeker and therefore should be exempt from criminal liability under Article 3 of Law 5038/2023. The lawyers submitted evidence and supporting case law, indicating that recognised refugees and asylum seekers fall outside the scope of criminalisation envisaged by smuggling law.

Both defense claims were dismissed by the judges and prosecutor alike, despite revealing legal flaws which raised serious doubts about the validity of pmid’s conviction.

A SIGH OF RELIEF, A SENSE OF FRUSTRATION

While Omid’s acquittal is a sigh of relief for our team, we know that circumstantial verdicts cannot guarantee systemic change.

The dismissal of the defense’s claims by the Rhodes Court, is yet another example of the Greek judiciary’s failure to respect Refugee Law principles & the Greek Migration Code alike. Without the acknowledgment of the legal safeguards protecting asylum seekers’ rights, the rule of law will continue to erode in Greece, as people reaching its borders are systematically criminalized for seeking safety.

While we celebrate the freedom of every single one of our clients, these trials leave us with a sense of bitter frustration. Ever since his arrest in July 2022, and until his appeal hearing in June 2026, Omid has remained detained in the prison of Avlona.

The positive outcome of yesterday’s verdict, cannot distract us from the harsh reality that it reveals:

An innocent person has spent the past 4 years of his life behind bars. And he is one of thousands.

HRLP will continue to PROTECT the fundamental rights of people on the move in greece, so long as the justice system fails to do so. We will continue to fight for accountability, justice and systemic change.

Catch us on June 22nd, 23rd, 24th at the Samos court, for our next series of trials.