Tzionis gets eight months for burglary

The main suspect in the Strovolos double murder case has been sentenced to eight months on burglary charges in a separate case in Paphos, while defense attorneys in Nicosia are going on the offence during cross-examination of prosecution witnesses.

According to Reporter, Loizos Tzionis was sentenced by a Paphos District Court judge to eight months in connection with a string of offences in June 2012, including burglary, theft, and property damage.

It was not immediately clear whether the sentencing would be commuted to “time served” as Tzionis has been behind bars for almost a year during the ongoing double murder trial in Nicosia.

Tzionis is the main defendant in the murders of 60-year-old Yiorgos Hadjigeorgiou and his 59-year-old wife Dina Sergiou, who were savagely stabbed to death on April 18 in their own house.

Earlier this month at the Nicosia courthouse, Constable Michael Angelou Arnaout testified for the prosecution and was cross-examined by defence attorneys. Two other defendants are facing similar charges with Tzionis, all of whom have pleaded not guilty.
Arnaout was questioned during cross-examination over statements he had made and evidence he had presented regarding the investigation which had not been entered into a service logbook.

Arnaout also admitted to getting depositions from witnesses, including the teenage son of the murdered couple, with defence attorneys submitting to the constable that he had not been forthcoming with evidence.

The court turned down a request to call witnesses to verify the validity of their statements, following objections from the prosecutors.

The trial was scheduled to continue on Thursday at 9am with two new witnesses for the prosecution, officers Andreas Michael and Kyriacos Kafkalias. But it was pushed back to March 18 to allow some of the defence attorneys to examine additional testimony. 

Evidence from security camera footage will be presented on Monday according to local media.