Probe into Panathinaikos basketball chief's threats against Olympiakos player

A prosecutor investigating sports-related issues has launched an investigation against Panathinaikos basketball club owner Dimitris Giannakopoulos after he was accused of directing threats at Olympiakos captain Vassilis Spanoulis following a league game between the two teams on Saturday.

Spanoulis is due to be called to give evidence this week and will be asked whether he wants to file charges against Giannakopoulos, who is alleged to have threatened the Greece international, as well as his family.

Earlier, the game between the two sides had to be temporarily suspended after Panathinaikos fans spilled onto the court when Spanoulis celebrated after scoring.

Giannakopoulos issued a statement on Monday suggesting that he had acted out of character and that he spoke to Spanoulis on Sunday to clarify matters.

Panathinaikos was fined 150,000 euros last month after Giannakopoulos accused officials of showing bias towards Barcelona in a Euroleague game.