‘Truth will shine’ over monastery scandal

The truth will shine soon enough over the ongoing Osiou Avakoum scandal, Tamassos Bishop Isaias said on Saturday.

He underlined he would not engage in a public spat over the matter and stressed he had complete trust in the Holy Synod and police.

“We are carefully watching everything that is falsely being said as part of an effort to affect public opinion and ongoing investigations,” he said.

“We will not go down this path.”

The Holy Synod has appointed a six-member committee to investigate allegations that two monks at the Osiou Avakoum monastery scammed thousands of euros out of believers.

Sources earlier this week said the committee was working at a ‘feverish pace’ on the matter.

The monks however have written to the committee to say it should be scrapped, accusing Bishop Isaias of going against standard procedure.

Police have also been criticised over its handling of the case, as no arrests have been made yet.

The monks were allegedly found with €800,000 in cash, and property in Greece and Limassol. They were also allegedly caught on CCTV footage having sex with each other.