Filenews 14 August 2025 - by Fanis Makridis
Since last week, the Cyprus Police have been on alert for pirate taxi drivers.
This is also evident from the content of an internal message of which "F" is aware. In a letter sent to all the police directors of the provinces, the head of the Traffic Headquarters, Harris Evripidou, informs on behalf of the Chief of Police, Themistos Arnaoutis, about the new provisions of the relevant legislation.
Specifically, it invokes the amending Law (On the Out-of-Court Regulation of Offences) that came into effect on 25 July and now provides that the fine for the offence of "transporting passengers on lease with a vehicle that is not equipped with a road taxi license" will now be punished with €300. The fine that was previously provided for was €85. Now, that is, the fine is 3.5 times greater.
In the same internal note, Mr. Evripidou, on behalf of the Chief of Police, calls on all those responsible to take their own actions for the implementation of the new legislative regulation.
However, testimonies and debates that took place in Parliament highlighted that the problem with pirate taxi drivers has taken on dimensions. In addition, as revealed by "F" on May 3, pirate taxi drivers without any license and legality are prosecuted for their illegal activity, but they escape it in the absence of testimony.
As we revealed on the basis of correspondence between the Legal Service and the Cyprus Police that we had secured, the criminal investigators forward the cases for registration without, however, ensuring the most important thing: the testimony from the client of the accused, to whom the transport services are offered.
Fatally, the cases fell to the Courts, with the "pirates" continuing to illegalize undisturbed.
An official of the Legal Service who had handled the matter informed that there were heaps of such cases that were being taken to the Court, but pointed out that there was no "thorough check" before the recommendation of the examiner of the case/police investigator for criminal prosecution of the suspect.
He indicated that the offence could not be proved without the testimony of the passengers, who gave sworn testimony about the case and said the obvious, that they paid a price for their transport.
