Filenews 4 December 2025 - by Theodora Nikolaou
An uproar has erupted after the news was published about the complaint of a British widow who claims that her husband's heart was lost after the autopsy performed on his body in Cyprus. The case, which became known after publications in foreign media, caused a wave of reactions and comments on social media. On the one hand, the family of the deceased claims that they were not aware that they removed the heart from his body. On the other hand, the Police clarifies that all the legal procedures were carried out and that the family had been informed. As Filenews found out after investigating the matter, the heart was examined by a histopathologist and never left Cyprus, since it is evidence.
What the family supports
Specifically, as Yvonne Greeley complained to the British The Sun, her husband Michael Greeley passed away while they were on vacation in Cyprus with their family. An autopsy was performed, but no cause of death was determined, and his body was taken to the United Kingdom where the family lives. There, according to her, a second autopsy was performed by the coroner's office in Rochdale. Then it was found, according to Yvonne, that his heart had been removed. "They told me that someone had Michael's heart removed and so they can't determine the cause of death," the 73-year-old said. "I was so shocked. It was horrible," she said characteristically.
The position of the Police
For their part, the Cypriot authorities deny the complainant's allegations, saying that all legal procedures were followed and that at all stages the family was informed. In his statements to Filenews, the spokesman of the Police, Mr Vyronos, explained that the 76-year-old British man, last August was found unconscious in the hotel room where he was staying during his vacation in the free areas of Famagusta. It was a sudden death, where the appropriate procedures had to be followed and a legal autopsy had to be performed. The case, according to Mr. Vyronos, was handled by the Paralimni police station. According to the Police spokesman, during the autopsy on the body, it was deemed necessary to take evidence from vital organs to identify the cause of death. Among them was the heart of the deceased. The family, he stressed, had been informed about the process.
Where is the heart
The heart, according to Filenews sources, was examined by the histopathologist with whom the state has a contract for histopathological examinations which take time to complete. As we are in a position to know, the histopathologist operating in the United Kingdom, examined the heart macroscopically in Cyprus. He received incisions for microscopic examination in Cyprus, the plates were prepared, which have not yet been sent to England for microscopic examination, and the legal procedure was essentially followed. Specifically, as we were told, the tiles are being prepared in Cyprus. When they are ready, they are sent to England, the histopathologist studies them under the microscope, prepares the report and sends it. The tiles are returned to Cyprus and are archived. "The heart never leaves Cyprus", as we were characteristically told.
As for what happened to the heart after the examination by the histopathologist, according to information, when the autopsy and histopathological examinations are completed, the organs are a presumption and are handed over to the Police. The instruments are kept either in the warehouse of pathologists in the morgue of the Nicosia General Hospital or in the warehouse of the Criminal Investigation Service (YPE) of the Police Headquarters. The instruments are archived on the basis of the data and the protocol number of each case separately and are stored for a specific period of time. In the event that the families of the deceased do not request or receive the organs within the specified time frame, then the authorities proceed with cremation.
In this case, the heart is a presumption, so the above procedures were followed. As we were told, this is currently in the histopathology laboratory of the Nicosia General Hospital. As for the results of histopathological examinations, as we are able to know, they are not yet ready.
