Cypriot Court Acquits Former Officials in Citizenship Scandal

A Cypriot court acquitted Demetris Syllouris and Christakis Tziovannis of corruption charges linked to a citizenship-for-investment scheme. The court cited lack of evidence in its decision. The scandal, which led to the scheme's termination, involved more than 7,000 passports issued, triggering widespread criticism.

A Cypriot court has acquitted Demetris Syllouris, former parliamentary speaker, and Christakis Tziovannis, ex-lawmaker, of corruption charges. The charges were linked to a controversial citizenship-for-investment scheme that has since been discontinued.

The Criminal Court in Nicosia, in a majority ruling, stated that prosecutors failed to demonstrate intent or complicity in fraud. The decision comes after Al Jazeera aired footage showing Syllouris and Tziovannis discussing ways to facilitate obtaining a passport for a fictitious investor.

The scheme, which ran from 2007 to 2020, granted over 7,000 passports and was particularly popular with Russian and Chinese investors. A state inquiry found the program lacked adequate oversight, ignoring warnings from the European Union.

(With inputs from agencies.)