The Nicosia Permanent Criminal Court has sentenced Shimon Mistriel Aykut to five years imprisonment after he admitted to usurping Greek Cypriot property in the occupied areas of Cyprus.
The three-judge panel (Christiana Parpotta, Christos Raspopoulos, and Panayiotis Savvides) handed down the sentence for 40 counts of “fraudulent transactions on immovable property belonging to another,” which Aykout had pleaded guilty to.
According to the court’s decision, the five-year sentence applies to each of the 40 charges but will not be cumulative, as they are part of the same case.
The offences involve 40 land parcels totalling 385,969 square metres, valued at €38,855,000 based on Land Registry Department assessments.
The illegal developments include five building complexes constructed in Agios Amvrosios (Caesar Cliff), Trikomo (Caesar Resort), Gastria (Caesar Beach and Caesar Blue), and Akanthou (Caesar Breeze and Caesar Bay).
The court’s ruling marks the first time in Cyprus’s legal history that criminal charges have been successfully brought for usurpation of Greek Cypriot land in the occupied territories.
Under the criminal code, the offences carry a maximum prison sentence of seven years.
Aykut has been in custody since June 2024, with this detention period being counted toward his sentence.
The prosecution withdrew a request for the confiscation of €19,694 from Aykut’s bank account.
The prosecution had submitted the forfeiture application just after 11:00, prompting the court to retire for deliberation. When judges reconvened at 12:00, they announced that both sides would need to present arguments on the matter.
Following this court direction, the prosecution withdrew the confiscation request.
