The pre-trial matters regarding the private criminal proceedings brought by the family of Thanasis Nicolaou will be completed by this Friday, according to a court ruling issued as part of the private criminal prosecutions on Wednesday.

Those named in the indictment include coroner Panikos Stavrianos, former Limassol police commissioner Andreas Iatrou, former head of the Limassol police department Nikos Sophocleous, as well as the former head of the rural police Christakis Nathanail and former head of the Platres police station Christakis Kapiliotis.

Despite the court’s previous instructions and guidance on finalising the pre-trial objections, the defence raised a new objection and provided details on the revised indictment, forcing the court to adjourn Wednesday’s proceedings until September 11.

The judge said that an excessive amount of time had been spent on the pre-trial proceedings, expressing the intention to conclude them by the end of the month in order to allow for the case to be scheduled for a hearing in early October.

According to the court, if no further applications are made by Friday, the defendants will be charged and required to respond. However, if any motions are made, the court would proceed to hear arguments from both sides and rule on them, allowing the case to proceed to the merits.

The private prosecutions concern the ongoing case surrounding the death of Thanasis Nicolaou, a national guardsman who died in 2005. His death was initially ruled a suicide, but subsequent investigations revealed that he had been strangled, leading to renewed scrutiny of the original police investigation and forensic examination.