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Suspect in prison murder case complains of treatment by police

prison 2
The man avoided prison for attempted murder

A suspect in the murder of a central prisons inmate, currently being held on remand in police custody, has reportedly accused a police officer of inappropriate conduct.

The suspect, currently detained at Lakatamia police holding cells, complained shortly after court proceedings ended on Monday, that a police officer at the station had asked to befriend his girlfriend on social media after she visited him there.

The Kurdish inmate said he considered this unacceptable and provocative.

As members of the anti-terrorist police escorted the suspect from the court, he appears to have become agitated, speaking loudly in Turkish.

According to news sources, police confirmed the allegation and are evaluating the evidence, pending an official complaint.

The suspect’s lawyer Yiannis Polychronis also confirmed the allegation and said he would prepare a statement in writing for his client, who, he added, had already complained verbally to the head of the detention centre.

Earlier, during court proceedings, the Kurdish suspect had further complained before Judge Loukas Paschalidis about the way he is being treated.

The suspect complained he is being held separately from 11 other prisoners also currently on police remand following the murder of Tansu Cidan, and that he is being brought separately before the court. He also protested over the fact he was handcuffed.

Head of Nicosia CID Yiannos Yiannakou told the judge this was for security reasons and because other prisoners are afraid of the suspect.

With the help of a translator, the suspect told the judge that “what the police are doing is against human rights,” and cited a psychological experiment in which it has been proven that conditions and impressions management can lead to a distorted appraisal of a suspect’s intentions.

“Why was I singled out from the other suspects and why am I appearing in court alone?” the suspect asked.

The suspect faces charges of premeditated murder and conspiracy to commit a felony. Based on what was presented by the head of CID in court, the position of the suspect is particularly difficult. Witness evidence so far, as well CCTV footage, shows that he led the assault on Cidan, which began 36 hours before his death.

Specifically, the suspect called Cidan to his cell on the morning of October 26 shortly after 9am where the victim remained for about eight hours, whereafter he had to be physically helped back to his cell. The following day, the Kurdish suspect is seen ferociously beating Cidan using a padlock, at which time the latter pressed the alert button for prison guards to come to his aid for the second time, just hours before he was found dead.

The renewal of the detention order for the suspect was preceded by a request for detention of the remaining eleven suspects, who are being investigated to determine their degree of involvement in the murder.

Following the end of court proceedings on Monday, another suspect told his lawyer, Kassandra Koupparis, that he was psychologically unwell. It was reported that he had been attacked by another suspect.

Meanwhile, last Friday three prison guards were also detained in connection with the case. The guards are suspected of conspiracy to commit a felony, murder and dereliction of duty.

Cidan was found dead in his cell on October 27, with an autopsy showing he had been beaten to death. He was initially arrested in April for drugs possession with intent to supply. He was serving a long-term sentence for “multiple crimes”, reported to include eight years for possession of a significant quantity of drugs.

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