The trial of former transport minister Marios Demetriades and nine other defendants in the ‘golden passports’ case opened at Nicosia Criminal Court on Monday, with the first prosecution witness taking the stand and 29 exhibits submitted.
The defendants face 84 charges, including corruption, bribery and money laundering, over the granting of Cypriot passports to 19 investors from Asia.
The first witness, a constable from the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) at police headquarters, appeared before the court, presided over by Judge Lefteris Panteli, in her role as custodian of the case exhibits.
The exhibits include original documents and application files for exceptional naturalisations from the Interior Ministry. The material concerned applicants from China and Cambodia, among others.
Prosecutor Haris Karaolidou told the court she would open the case by submitting exhibits that the defence did not contest. She said some documents on the original list would not be used to prove the case.
The hearing was adjourned after the agreed exhibits were submitted and will resume on Tuesday, October 20, at 9.30am.
The charges
The other defendants are Andreas, Dimitris and Giorgos Demetriades, Eleni Symillidi, Jing Wang, Josef Friedrich Santin, Vasiliki Georgiou-Santin and the companies Andreas Demetriades & Co LLC and Delsk (Cyprus) Business Services Ltd.
The charge sheet includes corruption, bribery, trading in influence, conspiracy to defraud, VAT fraud and money laundering. The former minister is accused of allegedly intervening in the examination of naturalisation applications handled by the law firm of his father and brothers.
Other charges relate to the alleged unjustified application of a reduced VAT rate of 5 per cent and the alleged use of fictitious invoices to transfer money.
Among the prosecution witnesses is the businessman Savvas Kakos, whose testimony Marios Demetriades challenged in a letter to the Attorney General before the case was filed.
The case was filed on August 30, 2024 with 59 charges. A further 25 were added in September, bringing the total to 84.
The hearing began two years after the case was filed, following a series of adjournments since it was referred to the Criminal Court in October 2024. The amendment of the charge sheet in September led to a further postponement so the defence could study the additional charges.
All the defendants are presumed innocent.
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