A Cyprus court has sentenced Shimon Mistriel Aykut, a 75-year-old businessman with Turkish, Israeli and Portuguese citizenship, to five years in prison for illegally exploiting Greek Cypriot properties in occupied Cyprus, the court ruled on Wednesday.
The three-judge Nicosia Permanent Criminal Court imposed the sentence after Aykut admitted to 40 usurpation charges of “fraudulent transactions on immovable property belonging to another,” the heaviest penalty ever imposed for this offence in Cyprus.
The court ordered the sentences to run concurrently, with time served since June 19, 2024, to be counted toward his prison term, according to the 21-page ruling read by presiding judge Christiana Parpotta.
The properties involved in the case included 40 land plots with a total value of €38.95 million and a combined area of 394,969 square meters, misappropriated over a period of 10 years and five months, the court document revealed.
Legal experts familiar with the case indicated that Aykut’s defence team, including lawyers Maria Neofytou and Nikoletta Charalambidou, have 10 days to appeal the severity of the sentence, though they have not yet signalled their intentions.
Sources close to the case told Phileleftheros that Aykut might request to serve his sentence in Israel or Portugal rather than in Cyprus. If Israeli authorities approved such a request, the final decision would rest with Cyprus’s Minister of Justice.
If transferred to another country, Aykut would serve his sentence according to that country’s prison regulations. In a similar case, a Greek drug trafficker sentenced to 14 years in Cyprus in 2019 was transferred to Greece, where he managed to buy out his sentence and secure early release.
While acknowledging Aykut was not the “mastermind” behind the property scheme, the court determined his role was “significant,” noting he had registered the company involved in the illegal activities.
The court also rejected claims that Aykut’s prostate condition could not be adequately treated in Cyprus’s Central Prisons.
After the ruling, Republic of Cyprus senior lawyer Andreas Aristides, who handled the case, stated, “Today’s decision makes it clear that the occupation of part of Cyprus does not produce legal effects to the detriment of citizens’ fundamental individual rights, and that the Republic of Cyprus, as a sovereign state, exercises jurisdiction over acts committed anywhere in its territory, even in areas outside its effective control”.
“Justice through this case has sent a clear message in every direction: Anyone who buys or builds on or otherwise exploits land in the occupied areas belonging to Greek Cypriots commits serious criminal offences,” Aristides added.
The prosecution had initially requested the confiscation of €19,694 from Aykut’s bank account in Republic-controlled areas, which had been frozen in July 2024.
However, the request was withdrawn after the court noted it required a report from the Attorney General to determine whether the confiscation would be characterised as a contribution to the Republic or as a return of misappropriated funds.
Aykut’s wife and close associates attended the packed courtroom. Upon entering under police escort, Aykut warmly greeted one of the attendees with a gesture from a distance.
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