The start of the naturalization trial, which involves former Minister of Transportation Mario Dimitriadis and others, has been postponed to September 2026.

The proceedings, which were scheduled to begin today before the Nicosia Permanent Criminal Court, were postponed due to the court’s heavy caseload.

A new start date has been set for September 14, 2026, at 9:30 a.m.

A total of ten entities—eight individuals and two legal entities—face various charges, including, among others, influence peddling, bribery, extortion, conspiracy to commit fraud, money laundering, and violation of the Council of Europe Convention on the Criminalization of Corruption.

In addition to Mr. Dimitriadis, the following are also charged: Andreas Dimitriadis, Dimitris Dimitriadis, George Demetriades, Eleni Simillidi, Jing Wang, Josef Friedrich Santin, Vasiliki Georgiou-Santin, the company Andreas Demetriades & Co LLC, and the company Delsk (Cyprus) Business Services Ltd.

Meanwhile, the Criminal Court will consider, on July 24 at 9:30 a.m., preliminary issues raised by the defense. Among other things, a letter was sent to the Attorney General requesting information on whether an agreement was reached regarding immunity or favorable treatment for a key witness in the case.

All defendants are presumed innocent until the court proves their guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.

Source: CNA