Newsroom
Alexis ‘Alexoui’ Mavromichalis is out on bail and his lawyers are filing a complaint against the police, following a heated exchange he reportedly had with Nicosia’s police chief inspector prior to his release.
Mavromichalis, a Nicosia businessman with suspected ties to illegal activities, was arrested Tuesday for interfering with the work of police officers and disorderly conduct.
He was supposed to be released the following the day but a heated argument with Chief Inspector Nicos Sofokleous landed him behind bars for another day.
Sofokleous had asked Alexoui to have a sit down before his release Wednesday, with the two men ending up exchanging verbal assaults, according to ReporterCY.
"I’m gonna gut you and you’ll have it worse than the Aeroporos kin"
According to police, Alexoui threatened and tried to scare Sofokleous.
“You’ll see what I’ll do to you,” Alexoui reportedly told the police officer repeatedly.
But Alexoui’s lawyer says his client was not permitted to file a complaint against the police, citing verbal assaults and threats he had received during his detention when he was taken to Sofokleous’ office in handcuffs prior to the release.
“You’re gonna die,” Sofokleous told Alexoui according to Reporter citing unnamed sources.
“You better ask around to find out who I am,” Sofokleous reportedly said, adding “I’m gonna gut you and you’ll have it worse than the Aeroporos kin.”
The statement was believed to be a reference to the Aeroporos murders, a big chapter in the criminal underworld of the 1990’s when three members of the same family were gunned down in separate incidents. Two of the murders remained unsolved while two police officers were convicted and sentenced to life in the third murder, which took place on a Limassol road during rush hour.
Police Chief Zacharias Chrysostomou was reportedly displeased over the Wednesday incident, which landed Alexoui back in jail until his release on Thursday on a €10,000 bail bond.
Mavromichalis’ lawyers say their client was not permitted to file a complaint against the police and when Alexoui phoned an IAIACAP member to complain, he was told it couldn’t be done over the telephone.
The IAIACAP, the Independent Authority for the Investigation of Allegations and Complaints Against the Police, was voted into law in 2006. It has been receiving over 200 complaints each year since 2014, with many cases involving abuse of authority and corruption.
The attorneys for Mavromichalis reportedly wrote a letter addressed to the IAIACAP.
Alexoui, who is known for his public and frequent comments critical of the police, recently posted on social media a damning statement about police corruption that got him arrested.
He is now facing an additional charge of “causing fear and turmoil” against Nicosia’s chief inspector.
Tuesday’s arrest came after police officers detained a friend of Mavromichalis in the parking lot of a Nicosia hotel, with Alexoui arriving at the scene protesting and daring officers to target him instead of his friends.
