Supreme court delays custody hearing over five-year-old

A five-year-old child at the centre of a custody battle will remain with his mother in Cyprus until March 4, the Supreme Court ruled on Tuesday.

An appeal hearing after a lower court ruled the child must be returned to his father in the US due to be heard on Tuesday was postponed.

The woman had submitted a motion to suspend Paphos family court’s decision last week calling for her to immediately return the child to his father, who reported her for abducting their son from New York, where they lived and bringing him to Cyprus in 2017 when he was 12 months old.

After her motion was rejected the woman took the case to the supreme court, which decided she would not have to hand the child over until the beginning of the appeal hearing, scheduled for February 16.

The child will remain with his mother until the end of the appeal hearing, under certain conditions.

She will be required to appear at a specific police station daily, has signed a €200,000 guarantee and has handed over her travel documents as she is prohibited from leaving the country.

The postponed appeal hearing will begin on March 4 and a decision will be expected by the supreme court on the day, or the days following.