Prosecutors have dropped terrorism charges against Azerbaijani national Orhan Asadov, who has instead admitted conspiracy to murder an Israeli businessman and four associates in Nicosia, in a significant development in the long-running Cyprus terrorism case.
The 42-year-old defendant, who has been in custody since September 2021, reached a plea agreement during today’s closed session at the Nicosia Permanent Criminal Court, according to sources familiar with the proceedings.
The Director of Public Prosecutions withdrew terrorism charges that carried potential life imprisonment, with Asadov pleading guilty to conspiracy to murder, which carries a maximum 14-year sentence. He had previously admitted numerous forgery offences related to travel documents and weapons possession.
Prosecutor Polina Efthyvoulou and defence lawyer Kostis Efstathiou have agreed on the facts of the case, sources told Phileleftheros. The trial has been conducted behind closed doors for national security reasons since its commencement.
A hearing for mitigation has been scheduled for early November, with sentencing to follow. Asadov has already served four years in pre-trial detention, which is expected to be considered in his final sentence.
Asadov was arrested in September 2021 in possession of a modified pistol during a coordinated police operation at the St. Andreas swimming pool car park in Nicosia. Sources indicate he may be transferred abroad to serve his sentence, as he holds a Russian passport but is originally from Azerbaijan.
The case has raised questions regarding co-defendant Muzafar Abbas, a 31-year-old Pakistani national charged as Asadov’s accomplice. A trial-within-trial regarding alleged violations of Abbas’s rights during interrogation is scheduled for later this month, the third such procedural hearing for this defendant.
A third defendant, 30-year-old S. Hussein, faces charges of providing support to Abbas.
The case initially involved six defendants when filed in November 2021, with hearings beginning in July 2023. Two defendants were subsequently cleared for lack of active involvement, while a young Lebanese-Cypriot university student was sentenced to 12 months imprisonment suspended for three years and became a prosecution witness.
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