A British father charged in connection with the death of his three-year-old child after a fall at a Paphos hotel has returned to Cyprus and surrendered his travel documents, his lawyer said on Monday.
Lawyer Alexandros Alexandrou told the Cyprus Mail that the defence was now awaiting a response from the Attorney-general to its request for the suspension of the criminal prosecution.
The case is due before court on Thursday, September 17, when the father is expected to enter a plea if no decision has been received on the request by then.
“If there is no response by the 17th, then we will answer to the charges,” Alexandrou said.
Should the father plead guilty, proceedings are expected to move relatively quickly towards sentencing. If he pleads not guilty, the court will set a later date for trial.
The father was granted permission by Paphos district court on August 3 to return to the UK after depositing an additional €10,000 cash guarantee.
His defence subsequently submitted a request to the Attorney-general seeking the suspension of the criminal proceedings.
The court has heard that the father was holding the three-year-old in his arms and playing with him while they waited outside their fourth-floor room. A window was located next to where they were standing, and investigators are examining whether one section of the window had been left open without the father realising it.
Police are investigating whether, during the course of playing with the child, the boy slipped from his father’s arms and fell through the opening.
The father, his wife and five-year-old daughter, were on the first day of their holiday with grandparents when the tragedy occurred.
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