A 45-year-old citizen of the Republic of Cyprus was freed on Thursday afternoon, days after she was arrested by occupation authorities at the Agios Dometios crossing over an incomplete crossing procedure from the occupied north to the government-controlled areas the previous day.
The woman was brought before a “military court” in occupied Nicosia on Thursday, where she was fined 15,000 Turkish lira, around €273.
According to what was stated before the “court,” the woman had crossed by car from the Agios Dometios crossing into the occupied north at 6pm on Friday, August 21.
The “prosecutor” argued that during her crossing she violated a “restricted military zone” and had not completed the required “immigration procedures.”
The following day, Saturday, August 22, at around 1pm, the woman tried to cross with the same vehicle from the government-controlled areas into the occupied north. At that point, according to what was submitted, she was informed of the earlier “offence” and arrested, while her vehicle was seized as evidence.
The “prosecutor” said the woman had no prior “criminal record” and that she had accepted the charges against her.
Her lawyer noted that the woman, who also holds UK citizenship, expressed remorse and said the incident had happened through negligence and was a first-time occurrence.
The “military court,” taking into account the circumstances of the incident, the woman’s personal details and her “clean criminal record,” decided to impose a fine and order her release.
