Government officials could face criminal prosecution over defective Takata airbags that killed two people and seriously injured another, according to a report released by the Attorney General on Tuesday.
The inquiry found that negligence and inaction by the Road Transport Department contributed to the deaths, with investigators identifying potential criminal liability for several high-ranking officials.
Former Transport Minister Marios Demetriades and former Ministry Director General Alecos Michaelides face possible charges of abuse of power related to a March 2017 circular. The committee heard testimony that the ministry knew about the circular and that Demetriades helped shape its content.
Two former Road Transport Department directors, Sotiris Kolettas and Yiannis Nicolaides, failed to assess safety risks despite legal obligations to protect road users from dangerous vehicles equipped with Takata airbags.
The faulty airbags exploded in three separate incidents between 2017 and 2024. Andreas Loungou, 19, suffered serious injuries in 2017. Kyriacos Oxynos, 24, died in 2023, and Styliani Giorgalli, 19, was killed in 2024.
Nine transport ministers who served between 2013 and 2023 bear political responsibility for the failures, though none has accepted accountability, the committee found. All claimed ignorance about the Takata problem and how officials handled it.
The committee rejected these explanations, saying ministerial responsibility exists regardless of direct personal involvement.
Seven ministry directors general showed “inadequacy in executing their duties,” with most claiming they knew nothing about the dangerous airbags or recall procedures.
The Road Transport Department developed what investigators called a “distorted and dangerous” approach, treating manufacturers as solely responsible for recalls whilst reducing its own role to simply forwarding paperwork.
This hands-off attitude meant officials ignored repeated warnings about Takata airbag dangers and failed to assess risks or take protective action as required by law.
The investigation identified possible criminal violations including abuse of power, homicide, causing death through reckless acts, and causing serious bodily harm.
Demetriades denied any involvement in the 2017 circular, saying he gave no instructions about it. He called for the Transport Ministry to publish witness testimony “to properly inform citizens and restore the truth.”
The Attorney General will decide whether to pursue criminal prosecutions based on the committee’s findings.
Background context
Takata airbags contained defective inflators that could rupture with excessive force, projecting metal fragments into vehicle cabins and causing serious injuries or death. The crisis began in 2010 in the United States and expanded globally, ultimately affecting over 100 million vehicles worldwide in what became one of the largest automotive recalls in history.
Cyprus faced particular challenges due to its substantial “grey” vehicle market – used cars imported from other countries with minimal oversight requirements. Under Cyprus law, these vehicles needed only to be less than five years old for import, creating a regulatory gap where hundreds of thousands of potentially dangerous vehicles entered the market without proper recall mechanisms to notify owners of safety defects.
The investigation focused on three serious incidents, two fatal, involving Takata airbag explosions in vehicles circulating in Cyprus. Particular emphasis was placed on the Road Transport Department circular dated 21 March 2017, which the committee found left an information and responsibility gap by relieving importers of obligation to inform about “grey” vehicle recalls.
Through dozens of testimonies, multi-year institutional dysfunctions, coordination deficits between services and lack of political superior notification were revealed, resulting in dangerous vehicles remaining on Cypriot roads for years without owner notification.
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