Cyprus Court denies bail for Israeli developer accused of fraudulent deals on disputed land
A Cypriot court rejected an Israeli national`s appeal in a legal case that has become a thorny issue for Israeli-Cypriot relations.
Tel Aviv—A Cypriot court rejected an Israeli national`s appeal in a legal case that has become a thorny issue for Israeli-Cypriot relations.
Property developer Simon Mistriel Aykut, a 74-year-old Israeli-Turkish national is accused of selling EUR43 million ($44.1 million) worth of properties belonging to Greek Cypriots in Turkish-occupied northern Cyprus.
In two separate rulings this week, the Supreme Court of Cyprus dismissed three pleas by Aykut who argued he did not receive a fair trial. The Supreme Court said it could not examine the merits of Aykut`s case until the completion of his trial.
Aykut faces 242 charges including fraudulent transactions, illegal possession and use of land, and money laundering among other charges. All the properties in question are located in villages in the Famagusta and Kyrenia Districts of northern Cyprus.
He was arrested in June [2024], while trying to enter the Republic of Cyprus, where he also develops property, from northern Cyprus.
Photo: Cypriot police outside Nicosia District Court with inset of Simon Mistriel Aykut. Source: in-cyprus.
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