The Nicosia Criminal Court summoned Giorgos Christodoulou Zavrantonas to appear, ruling unanimously that there is a prima facie case against him for trafficking the 15 kilograms of cocaine that were seized in 2019 in Lakatamia.
The case is being retried following the Court of Appeals’ annulment of the 22-year prison sentence that had been imposed on him, due to a miscarriage of justice. According to his defense team, Zavrantonas intends to make an unsworn statement and call three witnesses.
ΣΧΕΤΙΚΑ ΑΡΘΡΑ
The credibility of the prosecution’s key witness, Yiannis Andreou—also known as Maronas—who had been sentenced to 16 years in prison in connection with the case, was a point of contention between the two sides.
The defense argued that Marona’s testimony is contradictory and that Zavrantonas should not be called to testify, while the prosecution countered that issues regarding the witness’s credibility are not examined at this stage.
Maronas identified Zavrantonas as the mastermind of the case and the driving force behind the importation of the massive quantity of cocaine from the Netherlands, claiming that he had received the drugs on Zavrantonas’s orders.
The Criminal Court ultimately ruled that the testimony presented so far is neither incomplete nor lacking in credibility to the extent that it would justify acquitting the defendant at this stage, adding that the issue of credibility would be examined at the final stage of the trial. The next hearing was scheduled for November 2.
See the report by Christoforos Nestoros
