The two Greek Cypriots and one Syrian who were handcuffed for the murder of Leontios Poyatzis last summer were today referred to the Paphos Criminal Court which will sit on June 23.
The prosecution asked the court to keep all three in custody until the start of the hearing in order to prevent them from absconding, citing the risk of committing other offences.
Their lawyers objected to the request and asked that they be released on parole. The court reserved its decision on whether to keep them in custody for next Friday while ordering that they remain in custody until then.
The defendants face ten charges with the most serious, that of premeditated murder, which carries a sentence of up to life imprisonment.
One of the two Greek Cypriots is already serving a prison sentence in the central prison for another case, while the other two are back in the hands of the authorities for various cases.
The testimony that "burned" the three arrested men
Police proceeded to arrest the three men after testimony secured from an unnamed person who was allegedly present at the conversation that took place in the 34-year-old's wooden house in the village of Konia.
They had allegedly offered him, as reported to the Court during the detention proceedings of the 34-year-old, to participate in the murder or to supply them with a pistol for a price of 20 thousand euros.
The body of Poyatzis had been found charred in a car, which had been completely destroyed by fire, on the morning of July 15, 2021, in the Anaritas area, in Pafos district. Examinations at the scene revealed that the fire in the vehicle had been set maliciously.
The necropsy performed on his body revealed that his death was caused by abdominal injuries, which were caused by a firearm.
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