On Friday, the Larnaca criminal court postponed the next hearing in a case involving a 77‑year‑old complainant who alleges he was subjected to pressure, threats and financial exploitation by four defendants.
The defendants, who appeared before the court on Friday, are two businessmen aged 44 and 42, a 49‑year‑old man and a 45‑year‑old woman. Their defence lawyers requested additional evidence regarding witness statements and further details about each defendant’s alleged role in the charges.
The court scheduled the next hearing for 5 October, when the four defendants are expected to enter their pleas. The 45‑year‑old woman and the 42‑year‑old man have been released on bail, while the 49‑year‑old man remains in custody at the central prisons in connection with other cases currently before the courts.
The complaint was filed by the 77‑year‑old victim, who claims that the defendants, acting as part of an organised group, subjected him to blackmail, threats, demands for money and sustained psychological pressure over several years. According to evidence presented at an earlier hearing, the case involved transactions worth millions of euros, and the complainant allegedly paid large sums for purported investments, business partnerships and personal matters.
Allegations also include an incident in which an unknown individual allegedly fired shots outside the complainant’s home a few days after he refused to pay a certain sum of money.
Charges against the defendants are as follows: the two men aged 44 and 49 and the 45‑year‑old woman face a total of 14 charges, including membership of a criminal organisation, conspiracy to commit a felony and a misdemeanour. The 42‑year‑old man faces 11 charges, including participation in a criminal organisation, conspiracy to commit felonies and abduction or deprivation of liberty with the aim of secret and unlawful confinement.
Separate charges have been brought against two men aged 49 and 51 in a related case concerning alleged obstruction of a police investigation and conspiracy to commit a misdemeanour.
Article source: cyprus-mail.com | Image credit: cyprus-mail.com