Lawyer Andreas Pittadjis denies all charges in 'golden passport' trial

24news.com.cy

Based on the findings of the Nicolatos Committee, the four defendants in the criminal case involving Al Jazeera news network reporting and the events surrounding the naturalization of foreign investors and businessmen were brought before the Nicosia Permanent Criminal Court.

Pittadjis: "I respect my colleagues' positions"

"I respect the positions of my colleagues; I will not raise any objections or adopt any positions; I am not seeking acquittal but vindication; let us all be heard in this place of justice," Andreas Pittadjis said while admitting no charges.

It is worth noting that Andreas Pittadjis's next trial date is set for March 8-9. The other three have until January 11 to respond to the charges.

Triandafyllidis raised the issue of process abuse

At the start of the proceedings, Dimitris Syllouris' lawyer, Chris Triantafyllides, raised the issue of abuse of process, among other things. "I have prepared seven points to become admissible facts upon which to base my submission. Counts 1, 2, and 3 involve the state at the ministerial level, with the participation of the Attorney General and Assistant Attorney General. Charges 4-5 deal with the involvement of a non-existent foreigner", while referring to the existence of illegality for Syllouris' involvement.

The accused include former Speaker of the Parliament Dimitris Syllouris, former AKEL MP Christakis Tziovanis, lawyer Andreas Pittadjis, and Antonis Antoniou, a senior executive of the Tziovanis group.

The indictment includes five counts of conspiracy to defraud the Republic and influencing a public official in violation of the law ratifying the Council of Europe Convention on the Criminalization of Corruption.