Appeal court overturns bail for man facing domestic violence charges

Nicosia, Cyprus. The court of appeal has overturned the bail release of a man accused of domestic violence, actual bodily harm, harassment, threats and psychological violence, the Legal Service announced on Monday.

The man faces 11 charges and will remain in custody until his next court appearance after the appeal court found a significant risk of reoffending.

Appeal against bail decision

The court of first instance had ruled that the prosecution had gathered insufficient evidence to justify keeping the defendant in custody.

Attorney-General George Savvides appealed the decision. The appeal court found that it was not necessary to prove with certainty that a suspect would reoffend in order for a court to order detention.

Previous convictions and pending cases

The appeal court was informed that the defendant had previous convictions for theft and malicious damage. Other criminal cases are pending against him, including cases involving alleged sexual abuse of minors and the dissemination of child sexual abuse material.

The court said several charges in the current case relate to offences allegedly committed while the defendant was on bail in other cases.

Court findings

The appeal court said there was a strong impression that the possibility of reoffending existed based on all the material before it.

It noted that conditions had been imposed in other pending cases to ensure the defendant’s attendance at hearings, but the alleged offences in the current case appeared to have been committed while he was on bail.

The court concluded that the first-instance court had erred in releasing the defendant on bail, stating that the risk of reoffending had been established to the required level at this stage.