Alexoui jailed as ‘flight risk’

Nicosia businessman Alexis “Alexoui” Mavromichalis will remain in jail pending trial, after a judge on Thursday said the suspect was a flight risk.

A Nicosia judge, who heard arguments on Wednesday during a bail hearing, returned to the courtroom on Thursday and ruled that Alexoui should be jailed as he was a “flight risk.”

Alexoui is accused of being behind the attempted murder of Panicos “Glykas” Panayiotou, who was shot multiple times outside his residence back in November 2017. The other suspects, identified as associates of the main defendant, are Miroslav “Rudolf” Balazovjech as the alleged shooter and Josef “Sifis” Josef who allegedly arranged the hit.

Defence attorney Andros Pelekanos argued that the detention of his client was unlawful because it was based on contradictory witness statements, while adding there were ulterior motives.

Police prosecutors argued that Mavromichalis had the power to influence witnesses prior to the trial.

While the judge said she did not hear any testimony that showed Mavromichalis could have the power to influence witnesses, she agreed with prosecutors that he was a flight risk.

Alexoui, a husband and a father of one, had multiple attempts on his life. He has also been at odds with police investigators, who have been putting pressure on him and his associates in recent years.

In a 2018 case involving an alleged plot against Mavromichalis, state prosecutors said they would not go after two Serbian suspects who had been extradited for the trial but instead authorities would initiate deportation proceedings for them.

The two defendants, along with a local convict, were being accused of plotting to kill Alexoui during what some described as a potential bloodbath with a number of targets in Cyprus taken out with the use of foreign hit men.

Cypriot police was also caught in a media firestorm after leaked information showed that a phone call was placed from Nicosia Interpol to a Serbian mob boss.

Officials claimed the phone call was an inadvertent error while former deputy police chief Andreas Kyriacou was fired after being accused of leaking the information to the press.

Kyriacou’s case was dropped on Thursday, hours before Alexoui was ordered to remain in custody pending his trial.