Newsroom
A team from the Interior Ministry has taken possession of case files from the Turkish Cypriot Properties service in Paphos, launching a review that has stirred fresh scrutiny over how such properties are managed.
Sources say the officials spent an entire day at the local office last Wednesday before transporting specific case folders to the ministry’s central offices for examination. The review follows a wave of complaints submitted to the legal guardian of the properties and to the ministry itself, prompting checks that authorities say they are obligated to carry out.
Officials indicated that the files now under study concern particular cases for which what they described as “credible information” suggests possible irregularities. They stressed, however, that no conclusions have been reached and nothing is ready for public announcement.
The issue is not new. According to the same information, distortions in how Turkish Cypriot properties have been handled date back decades, even to the early years after the 1974 invasion, suggesting systemic problems rather than a recent development. The ministry says its aim is to streamline and rationalize procedures where weaknesses are identified.
The surge in complaints reportedly intensified after the suspension of Phedon Phedonos, though officials emphasized there is currently no statement or finding linking him to the cases under review. Police are separately examining allegations related to him, and authorities say they are awaiting the outcome of that investigation.
Meanwhile, the Audit Office has declined to comment until it completes its own evaluation of the complaints, saying any public update will come only if concrete findings emerge.
Context for readers: Authorities have periodically investigated management of Turkish Cypriot properties in multiple districts over the years following repeated complaints, but such probes often take months before any results are released.
