The kidnapping of the Greek businessman ended with a happy outcome. 74 year old Pericles Panagopoulos, owner of ships and one of the richest people in the country was abducted on January 12^th when he was leaving his house. Last night he was released after paying a record, for Greece standards ransom of 30 million Euros.

According to an official announcement by the police, the businessman was found around 1:00am by a police patrol in an industrial part in the Aspropirgos suburb. Pericles Panagopoulos was sitting on a bench, next to a parking lot, when the police recognized him and took his to the police station. Panagopoulos wanted to call his wife and tell her of his release and of his good health condition himself. Policemen from the station drove him to a meeting point, where he met his wife Katerina, who drove him home. The family doctor was expecting him and after a check-up said that the businessman is feeling OK and does not need to be hospitalized.

The amount of the ransom is not announced publicly but the media talks about 30 million Euros, which were given to the abductors early on Monday afternoon. First, the kidnappers wanted his wife to send the police away from her house, which she did; after that they told her to get in the car, together with Panagopoulos’ driver and to go wherever they tell them. In order to make sure that no one is following them, the abductors changed directions many times before finally telling them to leave the money in an abandoned place in the Viotia region. The police find similarities between the way Panagopoulos’ ransom was taken and the way the ransom of the Thessaloniki businessman Georgios Milonas was taken few months ago.

The police are optimistic they will find Pericles Panagopoulos’ abductors and they also remind that all kidnapping cases in Greece have been solved and criminals arrested until now. 74 year old Panagopoulos is supposed to give a statement in front of the chief investigator today.

Yesterday, two Albanians were arrested in Thessaloniki, ages 23 and 25 years old, and a third one is looked for by the police in connection to the kidnapping of the Thessaloniki businessman Georgios Ayvazoglou. He was abducted in October and after a four day captivity, he was released after a 400 000 Euros ransom.