Monastery sought €3m fundraiser, ignored govt reminders

The infamous Osiou Avakoum monastery applied for a €3 million fundraiser to the interior ministry in 2020. However, it never submitted any of the necessary financial statements afterwards, it emerged on Friday.

The application, aimed at collecting money to expand the monastery, was rubberstamped by the Tamassos Bishopric.

The latest revelations are part of the seemingly unending scandal surrounding the Osiou Avakoum monastery in Fterikoudes village. So far, police are investigating financial crimes, sexual harassment and abuse which allegedly took place at the monastery. The anti-money laundering unit is also involved.

A safe box was found with €800,000 at the monastery, with the cash transferred under police watch to the Tamassos Bishopric on March 5 in the presence of far-right Elam party leader Christos Christou.

No arrests have been made so far.

Senior interior ministry official Anastasia Kamenou told AlphaNews that after approving the monastery’s application for fundraising in 2021, they expected a financial statement. Nonetheless, the monastery ignored eight reminders.

“The truth is, we didn’t take any other action,” Kamenou underlined.

She was grilled over questions on double standards as the government’s stance was compared to a separate case of a fundraiser for an ill patient.

Once the patient died, a close relative was threatened with a court order to return money from the fundraiser back to the state.

Kamenou was pressed to answer as to why the monastery did not face a similar approach and whether the church is above the law.

“The monastery was not given preferential treatment,” she said.

Kamenou specified that a subsequent request for a fundraiser from the monastery was not approved in 2023, even though it provided bank statements showing €85,000 transfers for the previous fundraiser.

She underlined that the ministry is only able to examine physical receipts and invoices, meaning cash donations that do not come with a paper trail are lost in the ether.

In light of the latest revelations, the ministry will re-examine the case, Kamenou noted.

MPs have called for a thorough investigation on money laundering within the church, as the attorney-general has appointed two investigators to examine allegations that police officers were present on March 5 without the knowledge or orders from their seniors.