A request to allow the 37-year-old father to travel to the United Kingdom to attend the funeral of his three-year-old son is expected to be submitted by his defence lawyer, Alexandros Alexandrou.
The defendant appeared before the Paphos District Court on Friday accompanied by his parents and his newly appointed defence counsel. Observers described him as visibly emotional during the proceedings.
During the hearing, his previous lawyer, Agapios Kakogiannis of the Petros A. Stavrou law firm, requested to withdraw from the case, citing differences over the handling of the matter.
Alexandrou subsequently took over the defence and asked the court not to require his client to enter a plea at this stage, arguing that the prosecution file should first be disclosed to the defence.
He also informed the court of his intention to apply for the lifting of the defendant's travel restrictions so that he can attend his son's funeral in Britain.
Representing the prosecution, Chryso Perganti said the case file would be provided to the defence and that directions would be sought from the Attorney-General regarding the travel request.
The court adjourned the case until Monday, 3 August, at 10am, when the defendant is expected to answer the charge against him.
The 37-year-old faces a charge of causing death by a reckless, negligent or dangerous act in connection with the death of his three-year-old son.
Until the trial begins, he remains free under strict bail conditions, including:
- A €20,000 surety;
- Placement on the stop list preventing him from leaving Cyprus;
- Surrender of all travel documents;
- A requirement to report weekly to Paphos Central Police Station;
- A prohibition on crossing checkpoints; and
- An obligation to notify police of his residential address.
According to information available to Politis, the child's body was transferred to England several days ago, while the defendant's wife and their five-year-old daughter have already travelled to the UK so that the child can be reunited with her wider family following the tragedy.
The 37-year-old works for a large auditing firm in England.
The criminal prosecution was initiated following instructions from the Attorney-General after an assessment of the evidence gathered during the police investigation.
