Paphos criminal court set the next hearing in the case of escaped convict Doros Theofanous for May 14.

The two men, who became friends serving their sentences in prison, appeared before the court on Friday under draconian security measures.

Forty-two-year-old Theofanous admitted to the charge of escaping from lawful arrest but pleaded not guilty to the charge of conspiracy to commit a felony with his 26-year-old alleged accomplice.

The 26-year-old pleaded not guilty to aiding the escape of a person lawfully detained and guilty to disobeying a lawful order. It was ordered that both remain in custody.

Theofanous and his alleged accomplice face charges after the convicted murder managed to slip away from a seven-member guard during one of his home visits in Paphos on September 26, 2024.

Police assumed that the double-murderer planned to travel to Colombia via the north and said they obtained testimony that Theofanous’ father had been selling property to gather money and tried to sell a house for €100,000 briefly before his son’s escape. The 42-year-old was arrested three days later wandering around in Limassol.

Theofanous, a former hairdresser, was convicted 14 years ago of the murder of his four-months-pregnant partner Yulia Oporok and her three-year-old child. He received 24- and 35-year consecutive sentences for the crimes.