A meeting at the Law Office today will address criminal charges against former Transport Minister Marios Demetriades on suspicion of his alleged involvement in the golden passports scandal.
The meeting follows the recent court filing of the largest case investigated by police under Law Office supervision, involving over 20 naturalisation cases.
Sources told philenews that officials will review all ongoing investigations and provide instructions for filing completed cases. One case reportedly involves an individual connected to a high-profile accused in another naturalisation case.
The political landscape was jolted yesterday by news of charges against Demetriades, former Minister of Transport, Communications and Works. Demetriades decried what he called “pre-decided targeting” and “false claims and malicious charges”, asserting his trust in the justice system.
In a statement, Demetriades said, “For four years as Minister of Transport, Communications and Works, I served responsibly and with integrity, always prioritising public interest. Despite thorough scrutiny of my personal, family, and professional life, as well as my political decisions, nothing untoward was found.”
He added, “This targeting was pre-decided to divert attention from those truly responsible for the Cyprus Investment Programme. I am confident the truth will prevail in court.”
The citizenship-by-investment scheme – known as the ‘golden passports programme’ – was abolished after an undercover investigation by Al Jazeera revealed rampant corruption and that the government approved issuing passports to international criminals and fugitives, drawing criticism from the European Union and sparking protests in the country.
Under the scheme, foreign nationals were able to acquire a Cypriot passport by investing more than 2 million euros in the country.
Read more:
