Pre-trial matters in Thanasis Nicolaou private prosecutions to conclude by Friday
A court said it aims to complete pre-trial proceedings in the private prosecutions over Thanasis Nicolaou’s death by the end of the month.
Limassol, Cyprus. Pre-trial matters in the private criminal proceedings brought by the family of Thanasis Nicolaou are expected to be completed by Friday, the court ruled on Wednesday.
The judge said the proceedings had taken excessive time and should conclude by the end of the month, allowing the case to be scheduled for a hearing in early October.
Defendants named
Those named in the indictment are coroner Panikos Stavrianos, former Limassol police commissioner Andreas Iatrou, former head of the Limassol police department Nikos Sophocleous, former head of the rural police Christakis Nathanail and former head of the Platres police station Christakis Kapiliotis.
New objection
Despite previous court instructions and guidance on finalising pre-trial objections, the defence raised a new objection and provided details concerning the revised indictment.
The court adjourned Wednesday’s proceedings until September 11.
Next steps
The court said that if no further applications are made by Friday, the defendants will be charged and required to respond.
If motions are filed, the court will hear arguments from both sides and rule on them before the case proceeds to its merits.
Death investigation
The private prosecutions concern the death of Thanasis Nicolaou, a national guardsman who died in 2005.
His death was initially ruled a suicide, but subsequent investigations found that he had been strangled, prompting renewed scrutiny of the original police investigation and forensic examination.
This news item was generated automatically by Cyprus Inform from publicly available materials. Report an error →