By its Decision No. 688/2019, adopted on 24.07.2019, the Hellenic Competition Commission (HCC), following the relevant Statement of Objections concerning an infringement of Article 39(5) of Law 3959/2011 by the company COCA COLA TRIA EPSILON INDUSTRIAL & COMMERCIAL S.A (COCA COLA) and certain natural persons, consisting in the obstruction of an on-site inspection carried out in the company’s premises by the HCC’s Directorate-General for Competition, unanimously found that:
1. COCA COLA and certain of its employees (natural persons) actively violated Article 39(5) of Law 3959/2011 by moving and deleting messages from the e-mail accounts of persons who were employees of the company at the time, during the on-site inspection conducted by the Directorate-General’s officials at the company’s branch in Rhodes.
In the light of all the evidence of the case-file, as well as of the proposals for active cooperation put forward both by COCA COLA and by the above individuals, the HCC decided as follows:
2. Imposed a fine totaling € 800,000 on COCA COLA, pursuant to Article 39(5) of Law 3959/2011.
3. Did not impose a fine on the aforementioned natural persons.