Pafos Live 26 July 2024
A 52-year-old man reported yesterday to the Police that at around 7.40 in the afternoon of July 24, while he was at his home in Paphos with his minor son, three unknown persons went there by car, asking the minor to indicate to them the homes of the other three minors involved, like him, in a case of car theft committed between the dates of July 19-21 in Paphos.
The driver of the car in question allegedly threatened the 52-year-old and his underage son to get into his car and show him the homes of the other three minors, while he also allegedly threatened them not to notify the police, otherwise he would harm them.
After entering the car, the two complainants drove them to various parts of the city, while the driver of the car allegedly threatened them again and also demanded the sum of €10,000. Then they took them to their home and departed.
Testimony emerged in the case against three persons aged 29, 48 and 23, who were arrested on court warrants and detained. One of the three is the owner of a car that was stolen a few days ago and located.
The alleged perpetrator who has been arrested and has admitted, a Romanian resident of Paphos, has caused damage to the expatriate's vehicle and the owner along with two friends demanded from the perpetrator, when he was released by the police, to compensate him for the damages he caused to his vehicle. The latter, however, resorted to the police who arrested the expatriates.
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Filenews
Members of the Police and specifically members of the Anti-Poaching Unit, of the MMAD, at around 11.30 last night, stopped for checking, a 41-year-old man, who was driving a car in an area in Analiontas.
During the check, the members of the Police found that the 41-year-old was transporting with his vehicle, four plastic tanks and two water bottles, containing a quantity of fuel and specifically oil, with a total weight of about 4 tons.
Upon locating the large amount of fuel, the members of the Police proceeded to arrest the 41-year-old for the offense of illegal transportation of fuel with an unlicensed vehicle. The amount of fuel was withheld as evidence, while its exact weighing is expected to be done later in the examinations.
The Police have already informed the Department of Customs and Excise for further investigation of the case, within the framework of the responsibilities of the Customs Authorities.
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In the context of an investigation into two cases of burglary and theft, committed between April and July, 2024 in the district of Larnaka, testimony emerged against a 25-year-old man, who was arrested last night in Larnaca.
Specifically, the 25-year-old is allegedly involved in a case of burglary of a company's offices in Aradipou, where air conditioners and other items were stolen, as well as in a case of a kiosk burglary in Aradipou, where cigarettes and cash were stolen.
Members of the Aradipu Police Station went around 8.30 last night to the 25-year-old's home to execute the outstanding arrest warrant against him.
He allegedly resisted arrest and beat a member of the police, scolding him, while allegedly threatening the officers.
The 25-year-old was eventually arrested, while a search of a waist bag in his possession found a crystal substance resembling methamphetamine weighing about half a gram, as well as a tobacco syringe that also contained a crystal substance.
The Aradipou Police Station in cooperation with the YKAN (Larnaka Unit) continue the examinations.
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The Court of Appeal unanimously rejected on Wednesday the request of the 49-year-old German woman accused of usurping Greek Cypriot property in the occupied areas, to be released on parole, until the start of proceedings before the Nicosia Permanent Assize Court on September 17, 2024.
Citing relevant case law, the Court of Appeal ruled "that the Court of First Instance reasonably and correctly exercised its discretion by ordering the detention of the appellant, with the result that there was no room for our intervention" and therefore the appeal was dismissed.
According to the President of the Court of Appeal, which heard the case, the appellant, who is a German national, was referred by the Nicosia District Court (the Court of First Instance) to appear on 17 September 2024 before the Assize Court sitting in Nicosia, in order to answer 56 charges relating to offences of fraudulent transactions in immovable property belonging to another, as well as offences of illegal occupation and use of land in relation to immovable property in occupied Cyprus, which belongs to a number of Greek Cypriots.
According to the details of the offences, the appellant, together with other persons, used, advertised and promoted for sale properties of Greek Cypriots located in occupied Agios Amvrosios, Kyrenia. The appellant also faces a charge of money laundering.
Following the decision of the Court of First Instance to refer the appellant to the Nicosia Assize Court on 17 September 2024, the prosecution submitted a request that the appellant remain in custody until the above date. Her request was based solely on the risk that the appellant would not appear at her trial.
It is noted that the prosecution presented to the Court of First Instance, in order to prove the possibility of conviction, witness material according to which the appellant is the founder and director of a German company, which advertises and promotes for sale houses located in tourist complexes in Agios Amvrosios, Kyrenia, that have been illegally erected on properties of Greek Cypriots. It was also argued that the links of the appellant, who is a German national, with Cyprus are limited only to property ownership in the areas not controlled by the Republic of Cyprus, which increases the risk of absconding.
It is added that the defence objected to the requested detention, indicating that the charges facing the appellant are not particularly serious as they are punishable by a maximum sentence of 7 years in prison.
It is stated that as regards the possibility of conviction, the defence's position was that on the basis of the witness material submitted, this becomes remote because the appellant acted in good faith without knowing that the properties on which the complexes are being built belong to Greek Cypriot refugees.
It is recalled that the Court of First Instance, after hearing both sides, considered that the risk of absconding is visible to such an extent that it justifies the prosecution's request for detention. It has been said in this regard that the witness material indicates a serious possibility of conviction of the appellant, who has no special links with Cyprus. At the same time, it was held that no personal circumstances of the appellant had been brought before the Court of First Instance to prevent her from absconding, other than the necessity for her to be in Germany for the purposes of her company.
It is noted that the Court of First Instance also examined the conditions for the application of Law 121 (I)/2016. With reference to case law, it held that the application of the provisions of the said Law presupposes a conclusion by the Court that based on the principles of Cypriot Law and Jurisprudence, the presence of the accused at the trial can be ensured under conditions. Only then should the Court proceed to examine the links of the accused with his State of residence, pursuant to the above Law.
It is also stated that the appellant, in her appeal, challenges the conclusion of the Court of First Instance. On the sole ground of appeal, he claims that the detention order was issued by the Court of First Instance, effectively disregarding the provisions of Law 121(I)/2016.
It is emphasized that the appellant is a German national, who speaks neither English nor Greek and has no relatives or acquaintances in the Republic of Cyprus. It would be logical for her to request, according to her lawyer, that she be released under conditions, which will be decided by the Court.
It is also alleged that the appellant's personal circumstances were not taken into account and that the trial Court wrongly overlooked the fact that the appellant would have her whole life and her company destroyed if she remained in custody since she is the sole shareholder and employee.
For her part, the Ombudsman for the Republic argued for the correctness of the first instance judgment, since, according to the witness material and the absence of links between the appellant and the areas controlled by the Republic, the risk of absconding cannot be excluded.
Among other things, the Court of Appeal notes in its judgment that "in the present case, we find that the seriousness of the offences facing the appellant is a given. This results not only from the amount of the sentence but also from the very nature of the offences related to the encroachment of Greek Cypriot properties as a result of the Turkish invasion and the illegal occupation of a large part of our country by the Turkish occupation troops for 50 years.
It is also noted that it is clear that since the Court of First Instance held that detention was necessary for the appellant's presence at her trial, there was no question of applying the provisions of Law 121(I)/2016.
Regardless, as stated, and on the merits, "we consider as correct the position of the Court of First Instance that the appellant's ties with the areas controlled by the Republic of Cyprus are non-existent since, as mentioned, she owns property in the occupied areas".
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The Investigative Committee of the Holy Synod carried out a large amount of work and the completion of the indictment remained, which has already begun to be drafted, confirming what had long been evident, namely that there is a case that leads to the deposition of the abbot of the Monastery of Saint Avvakoum Nektarios and the archimandrite Porfyrios.
However, there is probably still some way to go before the end credits fall, and each of the charges against them seems to lead to the ultimate penalty on its own. As for the time of completion of the procedure (also by the Synodal Court), some see August passing and reaching September.
The indictment is drawn up by one of its members, who acts as an ecclesiastical prosecutor. He is considered to know the matter in detail, which is why the indictment is expected to be structured and prepared in such a way as to facilitate the Synodal Court to make its decision relatively soon, after of course inviting the defendants to apologize and giving them a reasonable period of time to prepare their arguments. However, a period of three months is not expected to be given, as the lawyers of the two monks had requested, but a period of up to ten days is considered reasonable.
According to information, although the material collected by the Investigative Committee includes issues of deception of believers (who gave the monastery everything from money to real estate), pseudo-miracles and even alleged forgeries, the indictment will focus mainly on ecclesiastical offenses related to the sexual activity of the monks.
The Investigative Committee allegedly possesses evidence from prosecution witnesses (whether they were protagonists or have knowledge of cases under examination), and has audiovisual material that literally seems to burn the accused monks. There are reportedly photos, videos, and audio material that is such that it "sends them untried". In addition, it seems that access was gained to some websites that are far from considered suitable for monks.
The monks, through their lawyers, at some stage characterized the evidence as fabricated but, according to information provided by Philenews, their authenticity was confirmed, so they changed their tune and focused on the position that they illegally came into the possession of Metropolitan Isaiah of Tamassos and by extension of the Investigative Committee. In fact, lawyers for the two repeatedly asked for the whole process to be annulled for different reasons each time. However, this effort also fell on deaf ears, since de facto their (upcoming) call to apologize, also answers the issue of illegal receipt of incriminating material.
As far as the management of the money of Saint Habakkuk Monastery is concerned, if it is a matter of concern to the Church, the fact that the Police, who have access to bank accounts and so on, have been involved, will probably be left to be judged by the Judiciary. However, the two monks accused Metropolitan Isaiah of Tamassos for pressuring them to give him money for his election campaign, which so far has not been proven. And, of course, if anything tangible emerges from the monks' complaints, the issue will also concern the Holy Synod.
It is noted that on March 8, 2024, the Holy Synod of the Church of Cyprus (following the submission of a file by Metropolitan Isaiah of Tamassos), decided to refer the two monks to the Six-Member Synodal Court in order to be tried for canonical offenses.
Subsequently, and following suggestions from lawyers, the Synodal Court, which met only once, referred the case to an Investigative Committee. It is also noted that the case would be concluded at a session of the Holy Synod before the above intervened, but at the insistence of Archbishop George it was decided to examine all the complaints, which are being investigated until today, with the involvement of the Police.
It is recalled that His Beatitude, who heard by telephone the two monks apologizing to him for what happened, could without further testimony raise the issue of their deposition and secure it from the Holy Synod, but he did not do so, in order to investigate in depth the complaints of all sides.
Finally, it is noted that after the end of the three-month holiday of the two monks, Tamassos Isaias renewed it, something that had caused the reaction of the monks themselves and their lawyers. In a relevant letter he had sent them, the following was stated:
"We would like to inform you that, pending the procedure imposed by the Constitution of the Church of Cyprus before its organs, by which the canonical misconduct committed by you is examined, we extend to you pursuant to Article 80 of the Charter the measures imposed from 5 March of the present year, that is to say, a public holiday, that is to say, a prohibition on performing any officiating and the completion of the proceedings and the issuing of a decision."
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On trial for the murder of Thanasis Kalogeropoulos is the 42-year-old who along with three other people was arrested for the case of placing a bomb in the car of a Central Prison officer.
These are people accused of having an active part in the murder of Kalogeropoulos in October last year in Limassol. Police during their investigation into the brutal murder had released a photo of the 42-year-old, who was riding a motorcycle wearing a hat. The same person was formally arrested for the case of finding weapons in a cemetery in Larnaka about two months ago.
As for the other three persons, one is -also- under trial at the penitentiary, while the arrests of the other two came after yesterday's operation by the ICF Nicosia on premises in the capital.
It should be noted that during yesterday's operation of the ICF Nicosia at the Central Prison for the arrest of the 42-year-old and the other undertrial, mobile phones and small quantities of narcotic substances were found.
A mobile phone was found in the 42-year-old's cell, while the other detainee was in possession of two portable phones.
All four arrested were taken today to the Nicosia District Court for a detention order in connection with the bombing case.
