Limassol court postpones sentencing in car theft case until September 23
The Limassol Criminal Court in Cyprus has postponed until September 23 the sentencing of a 30-year-old man who admitted to stealing a car. According to Cyprus Mail, the theft case is being considered in connection with the murder of businessman Stavros Demosthenous.
Car theft
The defendant again admitted that he stole a priest's car on October 5 last year. Prosecutors told the court that the vehicle was likely stolen as part of preparations for the murder of Demosthenous, which took place on October 17. Police found the car on October 14; it had fake licence plates installed.
According to the prosecution, the 30-year-old instructed another person to steal the car, saying that the priest allegedly often left it unlocked with the keys inside. The prosecution claims that the man took the vehicle during a church service and later handed it over to the defendant in Nicosia for 300 euros. After that, according to investigators, the defendant gave the car to another person, following instructions he had received.
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Defence position and the remaining defendants
The defence questioned the fairness of the proceedings because the man who, according to the prosecution, directly stole the car was not prosecuted. The lawyer also referred to a social welfare services report, the defendant's young child, his immediate admission of guilt, the return of the undamaged car to its owner, and psychological pressure caused by earlier, more serious murder-related charges.
The defence lawyer asked for the legislation in force at the time of the crime to be applied: it provided for a maximum sentence of up to one year in prison. The law was amended this year, increasing the penalty. Proceedings against two more people previously mentioned in the case were discontinued, leaving the 30-year-old as the only one of the original six defendants charged solely with car theft.
The case against three other defendants — a 31-year-old man and two 28-year-olds — is continuing on charges of premeditated murder, conspiracy to murder, as well as illegal possession, transportation and use of firearms and explosives. Demosthenous, the former chairman of the Karmiotissa football club, was shot dead in the Ayios Athanasios area while travelling in a Rolls-Royce driven by his 18-year-old son.
