A special court narrowly acquitted former Premier Andreas Papandreou on Friday of the corruption charges that helped topple his Socialist government that ruled from 1981 to 1989.
Papandreou, now the opposition party leader, said afterward that the verdict showed that the charges had been trumped up by the conservative-Communist coalition that succeeded him and called for an election."They tried to destroy me politically and ethically," said Papandreou, who boycotted the trial, including the verdict. He referred to the New Democracy government.
The trial of the 72-year-old politician gripped the nation. Televised daily, it often beat the most popular soap operas in the ratings with its coverage of corruption, gunrunning and terrorist connections.
If convicted, Papandreou could have been sentenced to life in prison.
But Friday the special civilian court voted 7-6 to acquit him on charges of instigating the loss of state company funds.
He had been accused of ordering company managers to deposit money with the Bank of Crete even as its owner, George Koskotas, was accused of embezzling from the bank.
A central bank audit in late 1988 found that $210 million was missing from the bank.
In delivering the verdict, the court said it did not believe Koskotas' testimony that Papandreou had taken bribes from him. The banker is to be tried separately for allegedly stealing from his bank.
The court's president, Vassilis Kokkinos, said the six dissenting judges believed Papandreou was guilty because "as head of the Greek intelligence service he had the possiblity to be informed of Koskotas's activities."
In an angry television address, Papandreou demanded new elections.
"With the excuse of a cleanup, the electoral will of the people was adulterated. The New Democracy majority is the result of the Greek people having been hoodwinked," Papandreou said. Elections are due in 1994.