Report on "Mafia State": Investigation into Operation to Arrest Ribollovleva with Involvement of State Officials
An investigation by the Anti-Corruption Authority is examining a coordinated operation to arrest Elena Ribollovleva in Cyprus, with possible criminal liability for former senior state officials.
Report on "Mafia State": Investigation into Operation to Arrest Ribollovleva with Involvement of State Officials
An investigation by the Anti-Corruption Authority has shed light on an operation set up to arrest Elena Ribollovleva in the island, with possible criminal liability being attributed to former senior state officials. Source: Philenews
The report from the Independent Authority refers to an organised operation that is alleged to have been arranged to put behind bars the wife of Russian businessman Dmitri Ribollovlev, within the context of financial disputes stemming from their divorce. According to the findings, individuals connected to the businessman, in cooperation with lawyers and other actors on the island, are alleged to have carried out actions to entrap and prosecute the woman criminally, using a complaint that had been submitted to the Police by lawyer Panagioti Neokleous, on behalf of a trust, concerning a piece of high-value jewellery.
Ribollovleva arrived on the island on 24 February 2014 and was arrested on the basis of a warrant issued from the aforementioned complaint. In the course of the case, however, evidence emerged that cast doubt on the legitimacy of the charges, whilst the publicisation of the case drew the attention of the international community. The plan for her prolonged detention collapsed and she was released. Nevertheless, according to allegations, efforts to exert pressure against her continued by other means.
At the centre of the investigations is also Rikko Erotokritou, who during the period being examined was serving as Assistant Attorney General. He maintained that he had no involvement in the case nor any connection with the Law Firm of Andrea Neokleous. However, from the testimony of the then head of the Attorney's Office Costa Kliridi and other evidence, it was established that Erotokritou maintained contacts with Panagioti Neokleous. The case file was sent to the Legal Service and Erotokritou handled it personally, bypassing normal procedures, and is alleged to have secured its immediate return to the Police.
Andreas Hatzikyriacos appears as the link that connected the former President of the Republic with Ribollovlev, being involved in the coordination of state authorities for the arrest operation. The former President Nicos Anastasiades maintained close relations with the late founder of the Law Firm Andrea Neokleous, who was Ribollovlev's legal adviser in the island.
The Authority's auditors conclude that there is sufficient evidence for acts of corruption, attributing possible criminal liability to Hatzikyriacos and Ribollovlev as "active intermediaries" and to Anastasiades as a "passive intermediary" for improper advantage and exercise of influence in public functions.
Source: Philenews