FROM ABCThe father of a young Australian tourist killed in Greece says his family is facing its own "life sentence" after a Greek bouncer was given 22-and-a-half years in jail for killing his son.
Mykonos nightclub bouncer Marios Antonopoulos has been convicted over the killing of 20-year-old Sydney man Doujon Zammit, who died after Antonopoulos beat him with a fold-out baton in 2008.
A court on the island of Lesbos commuted an intentional homicide charge to a lesser one of lethal bodily harm. Antonopoulos had told the court he did not mean to kill the Australian.
Doujon Zammit's father Oliver Zammit says he is disappointed that the two other men charged in connection with the crime were given prison sentences of eight-and-a-half and seven-and-a-half years.
George Chatzioannou and Dimitri Varonas had their charges downgraded from being accessories to attempted murder to being present during the attack but without having the intention to kill.
The owner of the nightclub was found not guilty of supplying the weapons used by the bouncers during the attack.
"Doujon did not have justice that night they took his life," an emotional Oliver Zammit told reporters outside the court.
"There was no court, there was no judge, no jury. We have been dealt a life sentence and we will have to live with this for the rest of our lives."
Doujon Zammit's cousin Adam Zammit is also upset by the legal loopholes in Greece.
"They say they didn't have the baton in their hands, so they're not as liable as the other guy, but they were all there," he said.
"When four people go and lay into two people that's not just assault. You know you're trying to do a lot more than that."
Nightclub dispute
Doujon Zammit was holidaying with friends when he died from head injuries after being attacked by Antonopoulos.
Throughout his trial, the bouncer wore a bulletproof vest as he was escorted into the court under heavy police guard.
The court heard how Doujon Zammit and two other Australians had left a nightclub but were chased by a group, led by Antonopoulos, amid a dispute over a missing handbag.
The Australians were confronted by the men, pushed up against a wall and searched before Doujon Zammit was repeatedly beaten. He later died in an Athens hospital.
Oliver Zammit donated his son's heart to Greek-Australian man Kostas Gribilas, generating widespread publicity and sympathy for the case in Greece.
Mr Gribilas joined the Zammit family in Greece to lend his support during the trial.
In a statement released before the beginning of the trial on the island of Lesbos, Oliver Zammit said his family hoped for the conviction of all four defendants.
Mykonos nightclub bouncer Marios Antonopoulos has been convicted over the killing of 20-year-old Sydney man Doujon Zammit, who died after Antonopoulos beat him with a fold-out baton in 2008.
A court on the island of Lesbos commuted an intentional homicide charge to a lesser one of lethal bodily harm. Antonopoulos had told the court he did not mean to kill the Australian.
Doujon Zammit's father Oliver Zammit says he is disappointed that the two other men charged in connection with the crime were given prison sentences of eight-and-a-half and seven-and-a-half years.
George Chatzioannou and Dimitri Varonas had their charges downgraded from being accessories to attempted murder to being present during the attack but without having the intention to kill.
The owner of the nightclub was found not guilty of supplying the weapons used by the bouncers during the attack.
"Doujon did not have justice that night they took his life," an emotional Oliver Zammit told reporters outside the court.
"There was no court, there was no judge, no jury. We have been dealt a life sentence and we will have to live with this for the rest of our lives."
Doujon Zammit's cousin Adam Zammit is also upset by the legal loopholes in Greece.
"They say they didn't have the baton in their hands, so they're not as liable as the other guy, but they were all there," he said.
"When four people go and lay into two people that's not just assault. You know you're trying to do a lot more than that."
Nightclub dispute
Doujon Zammit was holidaying with friends when he died from head injuries after being attacked by Antonopoulos.
Throughout his trial, the bouncer wore a bulletproof vest as he was escorted into the court under heavy police guard.
The court heard how Doujon Zammit and two other Australians had left a nightclub but were chased by a group, led by Antonopoulos, amid a dispute over a missing handbag.
The Australians were confronted by the men, pushed up against a wall and searched before Doujon Zammit was repeatedly beaten. He later died in an Athens hospital.
Oliver Zammit donated his son's heart to Greek-Australian man Kostas Gribilas, generating widespread publicity and sympathy for the case in Greece.
Mr Gribilas joined the Zammit family in Greece to lend his support during the trial.
In a statement released before the beginning of the trial on the island of Lesbos, Oliver Zammit said his family hoped for the conviction of all four defendants.
