Seven corruption cases against Anastasiades — Anti-Corruption Authority releases findings
Cyprus's Anti-Corruption Authority has found evidence of seven cases against the former president. Anastasiades disputes the findings.
Seven cases of "trading in influence" and "abuse of power" against the former president
A serious blow to the reputation of Cyprus's former president Nicos Anastasiades came with the publication of findings by the Anti-Corruption Authority, following a two-year investigation. According to the Newspaper of Editors, the Authority identified evidence substantiating seven cases against him, relating to "trading in influence" and "abuse of power" during his ten-year presidency. In one of these cases, the findings could be equivalent to a felony.
The investigation was based on the book "Mafia State" by Makarios Drousiotis, which documents extensive corruption during Anastasiades's presidency. The cases concerning him are connected to preferential treatment of Russian oligarchs, as well as party financing during the period of the collapse of the Laiki Bank.
The findings are not limited to the former president himself. In the Authority's announcement, findings are identified for even more serious charges, including "laundering of proceeds from illegal activities", against Anastasiades's former law firm — which today is half-owned by his two daughters — and against two of his former close associates, lawyers from the same firm.
The announcements were made public in the morning of the previous day, triggering a new wave of reactions against the former president. In recent times, Anastasiades has been attempting to regain his political influence, proposing to the Democratic Rally — which emerged strengthened from the parliamentary elections — to support the current president Nicos Christodoulides for re-election in 2028.
Late that same afternoon, Anastasiades issued a statement disputing the findings. He claimed that "most of the charges attributed to him were never raised before him during the investigative procedure". He added that he was not found guilty of illicit enrichment and corruption, whilst expressing readiness for an independent criminal investigation — on the condition that the Attorney General Giorgos Savvidis and the Deputy Attorney General Savvas Angelidis do not participate.
The question of criminal prosecution, however, remains in the hands of these two prosecutors, who, under the Cypriot Constitution, are the only competent public prosecutors. The European Union has exercised strong criticism of this system and is calling for its radical overhaul.
Drousiotis, against whom Anastasiades has filed a two-million-euro defamation lawsuit, is demanding that an independent investigation be conducted without the participation of the two prosecutors, citing a conflict of interest: both were appointed by the former president and previously served as his ministers. The author's lawyer, Lito Kariolou, has also called for their resignation, as they are directly or indirectly involved in cases examined by the Authority.
The Authority's own-motion investigation began in spring 2024, under the presidency of Haris Pogiatzis. To ensure impartiality, the Authority entrusted the leadership of the investigation to Australian legal expert on corruption matters Gabriel Macintyre. According to the Newspaper of Editors, Macintyre played a decisive role in deepening the investigations and in connecting evidence and testimonies. Previous investigations in Cyprus had identified extensive evidence of corruption during Anastasiades's presidency, but without attributing intent to high-ranking individuals.
Source: Efimerida ton Syntakton