Suspended Paphos mayor Phedon Phedonos is facing scrutiny on multiple fronts, as the Law Office prepares to rule on whether four serious allegations against him amount to criminal offences — and the Auditor General launches a separate wide-ranging audit of the municipality.
The allegations, first filed with police in April 2022 by a senior Paphos Municipality official, contain: the illegal use of an official vehicle; five unlawful hirings; planning irregularities involving Turkish Cypriot property exceeding 17,000 square metres in Mouttalos; and the irregular use of more than €1 million earmarked for student residences. Phileleftheros has reported that its own investigation found the complaint to be supported by documents.
Within days, the Law Office’s senior officials will meet the officer assigned to study the evidence to determine whether the material warrants criminal charges — and whether further investigative steps are needed, including a formal statement from the Paphos official at the centre of the case.
The Audit Office was brought into the investigation in February 2023 and found irregularities on three of the four complaints: the official vehicle, the Mouttalos property, and the illegal hirings. It sent its findings to the Paphos police directorate on 6 October 2023. The Crime Investigation Department at police headquarters subsequently took over, compiled the file, and forwarded it to the Attorney General in January with a recommendation. Attorney General Giorgos Savvides confirmed the file was received on 13 January. His office said it had been referred to the Law Office three times previously — in 2023, 2024, and 2025 — with instructions issued each time.
Running in parallel, Auditor General Andreas Papaconstantinou is completing meetings with individuals who have come forward with information about the municipality, with the process due to wrap up by the first week of March. A special Audit Office team will then focus its inquiry on the areas identified — with planning decisions made under Phedonos expected to feature prominently.
That scrutiny follows a separate Phileleftheros investigation revealing that under Phedonos, property developers granted planning relaxations were directed to pay the associated fees not into municipal coffers but to a private developer, who would carry out public benefit works on the municipality’s behalf. The amounts involved were described as particularly high.
Deputy Mayor Angelos Onisiforos told Phileleftheros the matter is under examination. He said he had requested data to establish “where the money ended up and under what circumstances.”
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