Predator Spyware Case Reopening Sought After Founder's Israeli Court Admission He Sold System to Greek State

Lawyer Zacharias Kesses, representing victims of Greece's wiretapping scandal, has filed a new petition urging the Supreme Court prosecutor's office to reopen the shelved Predator spyware case, citing an admission by Intellexa founder Tal Dilian in an Israeli court filing that he sold the Predator system to Greek authorities.

Mr. Kesses argued that the significance

The petition draws on a defamation lawsuit Mr. Dilian brought against one of his Greek victims before a court in Israel.

According to Mr. Kesses, the wording of that filing shows Mr. Dilian himself drawing a clear line between facts he does not dispute and claims he considers defamatory: he treats the sale of Predator to Greek state authorities as undisputed and even calls it "entirely legal," while disputing any personal involvement in using the spyware for illegal surveillance in cooperation with Greece's National Intelligence Service (EYP).

On that basis, Mr. Kesses said the Supreme Court prosecutor's office should retrieve the case file, request certified copies of the Israeli court documents through international judicial assistance, and weigh them within the ongoing criminal investigation.

He also called for Mr. Dilian to be summoned to testify. If his status as a defendant in a related matter is treated as grounds to question his credibility, Mr. Kesses said, prosecutors could instead call Intellexa's technical director, its administrative head and three technicians, none of whom has previously testified despite their roles surfacing during the first-instance trial over the wiretapping scandal.

The new petition will be consolidated with a series of related requests already before the Supreme Court prosecutor, the most recent of which was filed by former Prime Minister Antonis Samaras, himself a target of Predator surveillance, who has called for a thorough investigation into the case.

The Predator scandal, which came to light in 2022, involved allegations that Greek officials and journalists were placed under surveillance using the Israeli-made spyware, triggering a political crisis that prompted the resignation of top intelligence and government officials.

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Lawyer Zacharias Kesses, representing victims of Greece's wiretapping scandal, has filed a new petition urging the Supreme Court prosecutor's office to reopen the shelved Predator spyware case, citing an admission by Intellexa founder Tal Dilian in an Israeli court filing that he sold the Predator system to Greek authorities.

Mr. Kesses argued that the significance of Mr. Dilian's filing lies in its status as an official court document in which he acknowledges selling Predator to the Greek state while denying any role in how the spyware was later used.

The petition draws on a defamation lawsuit Mr. Dilian brought against one of his Greek victims before a court in Israel.

According to Mr. Kesses, the wording of that filing shows Mr. Dilian himself drawing a clear line between facts he does not dispute and claims he considers defamatory: he treats the sale of Predator to Greek state authorities as undisputed and even calls it "entirely legal," while disputing any personal involvement in using the spyware for illegal surveillance in cooperation with Greece's National Intelligence Service (EYP).

On that basis, Mr. Kesses said the Supreme Court prosecutor's office should retrieve the case file, request certified copies of the Israeli court documents through international judicial assistance, and weigh them within the ongoing criminal investigation.

He also called for Mr. Dilian to be summoned to testify. If his status as a defendant in a related matter is treated as grounds to question his credibility, Mr. Kesses said, prosecutors could instead call Intellexa's technical director, its administrative head and three technicians, none of whom has previously testified despite their roles surfacing during the first-instance trial over the wiretapping scandal.

The new petition will be consolidated with a series of related requests already before the Supreme Court prosecutor, the most recent of which was filed by former Prime Minister Antonis Samaras, himself a target of Predator surveillance, who has called for a thorough investigation into the case.

The Predator scandal, which came to light in 2022, involved allegations that Greek officials and journalists were placed under surveillance using the Israeli-made spyware, triggering a political crisis that prompted the resignation of top intelligence and government officials.

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