Charges against attempted murder suspect withdrawn

Charges against Iosif Iosif (known as Sifis) were withdrawn at Nicosia criminal court on Monday, over an attempted murder case against Nicos Rodotheou in 2018.

In total 13 charges against Iosif were withdrawn, after the main witness said he could not remember the events well enough and therefore would not be making a statement.

Prosecution said without the witness statement they did not have enough against Iosif, and therefore 13 charges were withdrawn, leaving him facing only one charge, which will be heard on October 19.

Iosif has since been released on a €10,000 bail and will have to present to Lakatamia police station once a week.

The witness, aged 31, was found guilty in 2019 for a separate case related to the possession and distribution of 14 kg of cannabis and 3 kg of cocaine. He was placed under the witness protection programme and sentenced to 12 years in jail.

The sentence was suspended earlier this year, after he implicated another three individuals for Rodotheou’s attempted murder and a deal was reached with authorities.

As a result, two men, Dydi Rudolf and Adam Abouramadan, were sentenced to 17 years in prison after they were charged with attempted murder, possession of a weapon and possession of explosives.

Rodotheou was targeted on November 26, 2018, when he was shot at while driving in Nicosia’s Hilton area. Five shots were fired at the rear of his car but missed.

In January 2019, Iosif was arrested in the north for gun possession. Though he was sentenced to five years in jail, he was handed over the authorities in the Republic in 2021 to stand trial for the attempted murder case.

Nicos Rodotheou is the brother of Andros Rodotheou who was gunned down while at a friend’s house at the village of Gerasa, Limassol, in April 2017.