Journalist Makarios Drousiotis and “Sandy” were referred on Wednesday to a direct trial before the Nicosia Permanent Criminal Court, in connection with the high-profile case.
The referral took place during the two defendants’ first appearance before the Nicosia District Court, where they were presented with an indictment containing a total of 101 charges.
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During today’s proceedings, the representative of the Prosecution, Alexia Siapanis, stated that it is the Attorney General’s position that the charges brought against the defendants are not suitable for summary trial, and therefore moved to have the case referred directly to the Criminal Court.
The attorneys for Defendant 1, Lito Kariolou and Alexandros Clerides, noted that the indictment does not indicate a case suitable for trial before the Criminal Court, while the defense reserves the right to raise its arguments before the Criminal Court.
Subsequently, the Presiding Judge stated that, although the charges in question could be tried summarily, given the position of the Attorney General, she referred the defendants to a full trial before the Permanent Criminal Court of Nicosia on December 15, 2026, at 9:00 a.m.
At the same time, the defendants signed a bond in the amount of 10,000 euros and were released pending trial.
The charges include, among other things, the offenses of forging a document, circulating a forged document, publishing false news, and harassment.
The criminal case was filed by the Legal Service with the Nicosia District Court on July 24, 2026, following a review of the evidence submitted by the Police.
The case concerns complaints and allegations that were made public in March 2026 by Makarios Drousiotis and were the subject of a police investigation. In the post in question, Mr. Drousiotis made a series of allegations regarding cases of corruption and other serious offenses, referring, among other things, to a judge, the Legal Service, the “black van” case, and the Focus case. After investigating the matter, the police determined that the messages on which Mr. Drousiotis’s post was based were fabricated.
It should be noted that the accused are presumed innocent until proven guilty.
Source: KYPE
