Drousiotis and Kyriakou referred to Nicosia criminal court in 101-charge case

Nicosia, Cyprus. Journalist Makarios Drousiotis and Kyriaki Kyriakou, known as Sandy, were referred directly to the Nicosia criminal court on Wednesday in connection with a case involving 101 charges.

Both defendants were released pending trial after signing €10,000 bail bonds. Their trial is set for December 15, 2026, at 9am.

District court appearance

The referral was made during the defendants’ first appearance before Nicosia district court.

Prosecutor Alexia Siapani told the court that the Attorney-General considered the charges unsuitable for summary trial and requested their direct referral to the criminal court.

Lawyers for the first defendant, Leto Cariolou and Alexandros Clerides, argued that the charge sheet did not disclose a case suitable for trial before the criminal court. They reserved the defence’s right to raise the matter before that court.

The district court president said the charges could be tried summarily but, given the Attorney-General’s position, ordered the defendants’ direct trial before the Nicosia criminal court.

Charges and investigation

The 101 charges include alleged offences involving forgery of documents, circulating forged documents, publishing false news and harassment.

The criminal case was filed by the Legal Service at Nicosia district court on July 24, following its examination of evidence submitted by police.

The case concerns allegations made public by Drousiotis in March 2026 that subsequently became the subject of a police investigation. In the post, Drousiotis made allegations concerning corruption and other serious offences, referring to a judge, the Legal Service, the “black van” case and the Focus case.