Filenews 20 May 2025 - by Michalis Hatzivasilis
The amounts frozen or even confiscated by the Police in the last year and a half are breathtaking, a sign of how much the underworld has escaped with its illegal activities and the determination on the part of the Ministry of Justice – Prosecuting Authorities in cooperation with MOKAS, to crack down on organized crime.
Huge is the real estate that is blocked by court orders until cases are heard, while among those seized are a hotel, a house, cars worth €1.1 million, plus ancient relics and an ecclesiastical icon.
According to the data obtained by "F", it appears that apart from Cyprus, assets were frozen or confiscated abroad, after evidence emerged that either the property was alienated from the illegals, or they attempted to transfer it out of Cyprus for concealment. A typical case is the freezing of a huge amount of cryptocurrencies by various scams through which Cypriots were deceived in order to invest in this type of transactions.
According to the data of the Police, which action with the impeccable cooperation of the Unit for the Fight against Cover-Up Crimes (MOKAS) of the Legal Service, from 1/1/2024 to 16/5/2025 sums of money amounting to €1.2 million have been frozen or confiscated (i.e. they have passed into the possession of the state). Most of these amounts relate to various cases, financial fraud for which it is being investigated or there is a conviction that they originated from a causal cause that refers to criminal activity.
At the same time, real estate (houses, apartments, hotels and plots) with a total value of €8.9 million and jewellery or valuables with a total value of €1 million were frozen or confiscated.
During the same period of time, vehicles were seized and detained, which will be confiscated, the value of which reaches €1.1 million. As we mentioned above, the value of cryptocurrencies that have been frozen or confiscated is also great. As it seems, there is a tendency of Cypriots to invest in cryptocurrencies because they are convinced that they will have a quick and big profit resulting in falling victim to international scammers. From the cases investigated by the Police, sums worth €25 million of cryptocurrencies (mainly located outside Cyprus) have been frozen or confiscated.
Also, ancient relics and an ecclesiastical icon have been detained by court order, for which it is being examined whether they constitute income from criminal activities.
According to the data of the Crime-Fighting Authorities, it appears that €1.8 million were frozen in bank accounts abroad. and another €896,000, which are amounts for investigated cases.
Hotel, house, cash in Paphos
The drug trade is one of the most widespread crimes that organized crime deals with, since it generates huge profits despite the great risk taken by smugglers. It is no coincidence that in recent years more and more quantities have been discovered by the Ministry of Agriculture in the effort of merchants to import and market them. According to the Police data, in the last year and a half, amounts of up to half a million euros have been confiscated.
These sums are blocked by court decrees and if the defendants in whose possession they were found do not give adequate explanations for their origin, then the Courts order their confiscation.
At the same time, the Police, in the context of an investigation of a case, have proceeded to seize a hotel and a residence in Paphos as well as the amount of €640,000 in the same district. It is worth noting that since last year, on the instructions of the Minister of Justice and Public Order, Marios Hartsiotis, a special team has been set up to voluntarily investigate cases for the acquisition of property without being justified.
As we have been told, members of this group may ask someone to justify the origin of a luxury vehicle or yacht found in their possession or real estate, even without a case being investigated against them. They can also ask someone to explain how they were found in possession of a luxury vehicle. This team has brought several results, while there is also cooperation with the Income Tax in order to determine if what is detected has been declared.
