The agriculture minister is set to request the suspension of three Department of Forests officials amid a probe into alleged financial irregularities in firefighting aircraft contracts.
The minister will formally ask the Public Service Commission to consider suspending the officials from the department’s Aircraft Unit to facilitate the investigation. One of the individuals has been abroad since Tuesday.
The police’s criminal investigation department (CID) is currently examining evidence collected during a Wednesday raid at the unit’s Larnaca headquarters.
The investigation centres on suspected financial mismanagement in Department of Forests tenders for aerial firefighting equipment, including aircraft rentals, maintenance, and parts procurement.
Investigators are cross-referencing their findings with an earlier administrative inquiry conducted by an agriculture ministry official from the Rural Development Directorate-General.
The Department of Forests operates under the Environment Directorate-General.
Agriculture Minister Maria Panayiotou said the criminal investigation targets specific individuals, not the entire Department of Forests staff, focusing on aerial firefighting procurement contracts from 2017 onwards.
The minister initiated an administrative investigation last summer following complaints. After receiving the findings on December 6, she forwarded them to the Law Office.
Following consultations with the deputy attorney general, the evidence was referred to the police for further investigation.
The Treasury Department now handles new tenders for aircraft rental and purchases with crew.
