Israeli property developer Simon Aykut, who stands accused of developing and selling €43 million worth of property on Greek Cypriot land in the north, is expected to plead guilty to some of the charges he faces on Monday, according to reports.
Multiple news outlets on Monday morning reported that Aykut will plead guilty to a number of the charges he faces, while the rest will be withdrawn, as part of a deal forged between the prosecution and the defence.
He faces a total of 242 charges, of which 60 are related to “fraudulent real estate transactions”, 60 are related to being in possession of stolen land, 62 are related to money laundering, and 60 are related to conspiracy to commit a crime.
At the beginning of last month, Aykut’s son Yaacov Afik released a statement to mark 500 days since his father was arrested, criticising the Republic of Cyprus for the way he has been treated.
He compared the case being faced by his father to that being faced by the five Greek Cypriots who were arrested in the north, and said that “while political and diplomatic campaigns are being carried out for the Greek Cypriots, silence prevails for 75-year-old cancer patient Simon, who has been imprisoned in the south for 500 days”.
He added that he applied to the European Court of Human Rights over his father’s case six months ago, but that the case is “still pending”.
More to follow…
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