Suspended Paphos mayor Phedon Phedonos was questioned as a felony suspect at Nicosia’s CID on Wednesday, as investigators sought legal guidance on next steps — a sign the inquiry into allegations of rape and domestic violence is approaching a critical stage.
Phedonos arrived accompanied by two lawyers, Epaminondas Korakidis and Christos Pourgourides. The questioning was investigative in nature, with the specialist police team examining an alleged rape said to have occurred in 2014 as well as a domestic violence case.
The same day, the investigative team sought guidance from the Law Office on how to proceed. The team is drawn from different police departments and reports exclusively to police leadership, a structure that has kept the inquiry largely free of leaks.
The investigation has also extended to officials who, at the time of the alleged offences, received reports and information about the rape allegation, Phileleftheros sources said.
A member of Phedonos’s entourage threatened a TV crew waiting outside the unit with legal action if they filmed his arrival.
When Phileleftheros reached Korakidis late Wednesday afternoon, he refused to comment and told the reporter not to call him again.
58% of nationwide violations traced to Paphos
Separately, the Interior Ministry is investigating a series of irregular contracts involving Turkish Cypriot properties managed by Paphos Municipality under Phedonos.
Speaking on OMEGA television’s Enimerosi Tora programme on Thursday, Interior Minister Constantinos Ioannou said a ministry team had begun a fresh on-site inspection in Paphos the previous day.
The inspection will also cover irregularities identified as far back as 2023 and previously reported by Phileleftheros.
A ministry survey completed in early 2025 — covering the use and occupation of Turkish Cypriot properties by all municipalities across Cyprus — found 31 cases of contract violations island-wide. Of those, 18, or 58%, were attributed to Paphos Municipality.
The Agios Theodoros case
Following a request by Paphos Municipality in July 2018, the Custodian of Turkish Cypriot Properties leased plots totalling 21,424 sq.m. in Agios Theodoros to the municipality.
The contract, in force from July 2020 at an annual rent of €1,500, required the municipality to develop car parking facilities.
A 2025 on-site inspection found the municipality had done nothing more than clear the land and plant a sparse row of trees — far short of the promised car park.
A warning letter was sent in February 2025. The Advisory Committee, which oversees such properties under statute, decided in April 2025 to terminate the contract.
The decision was formally communicated to the municipality through the Paphos District Administration in November 2025.
At the same April session, the committee rejected a separate request — submitted by the municipality in early 2020 — for eight additional Turkish Cypriot plots totalling 4,587 sq.m.
Six of the eight plots were the only land available to a displaced person who had farmed them with olive trees — yet the municipality still pushed for their allocation.
The municipality had said it intended to develop an urban park with a playground and parking areas. In both cases, the plans it submitted failed to meet the committee’s requirements.
Minister rejects mayor’s interference claims
Phedonos responded to the contract termination with a letter dated 19 December 2025 alleging external interference in the handling of the cases. Minister Ioannou replied on 19 January 2026, setting out the full factual record and rejecting the claims.
Pointing to the fact that the Custodian had signed 110 lease contracts with Paphos Municipality — around 50 in the past five years alone — Ioannou said this record “disproves any claim of systematic disregard of public interest, as well as claims of external interference aimed at preventing the allocation of plots to the municipality.”
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