Golden passports trial set to proceed

The trial proper in the ‘golden passports’ case is expected to proceed later this month, after the defence said on Friday that prosecutors had adequately explained some of the new indictments added to the charge sheet. On trial at Nicosia criminal court are ten defendants: former transport minister Marios Demetriades, Andreas Demetriades, Demetris Demetriades, Giorgos Demetriades, Eleni Simillidi, Jing Wang, Josef Friedrich Santin, Vasiliki Georgiou-Santin, Andreas Demetriades & Co LLC and Delsk Business Services Ltd. The charges involve corruption, bribery, conspiracy to defraud, and money laundering related to the naturalisation of 19 Asian investors, in the context of the now-defunct citizenship-by-investment scheme. All defendants deny the charges. While the case was filed back in 2024, the start of the trial proper has been delayed due to procedural issues. The latest hitch came about after prosecutors had amended the charge sheet, adding 24 new indictments. Lawyers for the defendants had said three of the new indictments were unclear as to what precisely their clients were being accused of. In court on Friday, defence attorney Elias Stefanou said they were now satisfied, having since received clarifications from the prosecution. At the same time, however, Stefanou told the court that should prosecutors subsequently attempt to broaden the scope of the charges, he would raise the matter of a fair trial. With the two sides having agreed on the charge sheet, the trial proper now looks set to proceed at the next hearing, set for October 19. Following investigations, police had said the scheme involved a man married to an embassy employee who had contact with Chinese investors. Money was allegedly paid by those seeking Cypriot passports, with portions of investment funds being channelled to third parties through various companies. Former minister Demetriades is specifically charged with intervening in citizenship applications handled by his father’s and brothers’ law firm. The second charge involves “accepting gifts as a public official” related to a Chinese investor’s naturalisation. The third charge alleges bribery of a public official, citing Demetriades’ active participation in cabinet decisions. Meanwhile defendants Josef Friedrich Santin, Vasiliki Georgiou-Santin, and Delsk Ltd face charges of influence peddling. This is one of four court cases filed in relation to the ‘golden passports’ scheme. The most prominent one, involving former House president Demetris Syllouris and former Akel MP Christakis Giovani, resulted in acquittals in February this year.