Funds worry for fall death family

Mr Rochester died after being left on a hospital trolley

The family of a holidaymaker who died in Greece face a funding shortfall in a their bid to prosecute three doctors.

Christopher Rochester fell from a Faliraki hotel balcony in 2000 and died after being left on a hospital trolley.

His family is privately prosecuting Stergios Pavlidis, Georgos Karavolias and Mihalis Sokorelos, who were cleared of manslaughter by neglect.

Mr Rochester's stepfather, George Cummings, said the case should still go ahead despite the £2,000 deficit.

It's the first time we've been out there with a deficit, but we have a good relationship with our legal team George Cummings

The 24-year-old died of internal bleeding at the island's Andreas Papandreou Hospital, after being left unattended for three hours.

The doctors were each sentenced to three years in jail, but all were cleared on appeal in 2005.

However, the Greek Supreme Court later ruled the appeal should be overturned and subsequently approved the private prosecution.

Mr Rochester's family has raised about £7,000 via fundraising activities, including a 73-mile walk along Hadrian's Wall.

But the prosecution, due to start on 5 February, is likely to cost about £9,000.

Mr Cummings said: "Hopefully it means nothing. We've paid the lawyers every Euro right on time over the past seven-and-a-half years.

"We should be able to give them about three quarters of what they need and hopefully they'll let us defer the rest.

"It's the first time we've been out there with a deficit, but we have a good relationship with our legal team."