The third criminal investigation into the death of 26-year-old soldier Thanasis Nicolaou is set to conclude this week, with investigators due to submit their findings by March 7, 2025.
Criminal investigators Athanasios Athanasiou and Lambros Pappas are expected to deliver their report containing conclusions and recommendations following the extension granted to them, according to philenews sources.
The investigation has reportedly reached the conclusion that Nicolaou’s death was a homicide committed by third parties, and that two individuals have been questioned as suspects.
One person questioned is reportedly forensic pathologist Panikos Stavrianos, whom investigators have linked to “serious actions and omissions” related to the autopsy and discovery of the body, though not to the criminal act itself. Stavrianos has rejected all allegations against him.
The second person questioned is reportedly a former soldier from Nicolaou’s military unit.
Sources familiar with the investigation told philenews that few new elements have emerged in this third and likely final criminal investigation into a case that spans two decades, highlighting “how troubled this story is and that it must be concluded to give peace to the family of the unjustly lost 26-year-old soldier”.
A key question remains regarding what stance investigators will take concerning police officers who guided the 2005 investigation and concluded no crime had occurred, which led to the case being assigned to Lania police station rather than Limassol CID (Crime Investigation Department).
The investigators’ recommendations on potential criminal offenses will be particularly significant given previous experience.
The report notes that “both criminal investigators Matsas and Alexopoulos in their findings had made specific recommendations regarding persons responsible for inadequate investigation into the causes of the national guardsman’s death, but the Attorney General decided not to adopt their views, which provoked a strong reaction from Thanasis’s family”.
According to sources, witnesses have either changed their testimonies or provided additional information pointing to criminal activity behind the young man’s death, though insufficient to identify perpetrators.
The 20-year timespan since his death has likely eliminated evidence and silenced potential witnesses.
The key witness, forensic pathologist Panikos Stavrianos, who was called twice before criminal investigators, maintained his original 2005 position that the death resulted from a fall from height and ruled out criminal activity.
During his second appearance, Stavrianos was reportedly questioned for 10 hours, leading him to file a complaint against one investigator for oppressive behavior, leaving his testimony unsigned.
The report must be submitted to the Cabinet and then forwarded to the Attorney General, who is constitutionally responsible for deciding whether to pursue criminal prosecutions based on collected evidence.
Thanasis’ body was found under a bridge in Alassa in 2005 and his death was deemed by the army and police as a suicide. But after his remains were exhumed in 2020 over suspicions of foul play, further autopsies showed he had been beaten and strangled.
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