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Cyprus Court Acquits Five and Convicts Two in Golden Passports Trial · IMI Podcasts

• 0:00
  SPEAKER_00: A Nicosia criminal court acquitted five defendants of fraud charges in a high-profile case linked to Cyprus's terminated citizenship by investment program, also known as CIP.
• 0:10
  SPEAKER_00: The judgment, delivered Thursday, January 23, 2025, convicted Mikali Zavos and his company, Lorena Estates Laotide, of tax-related offenses.
• 0:22
  SPEAKER_00: The case emerged from a public inquiry into Cyprus's CIP and examined alleged offenses committed between 2017 and 2019.
• 0:32
  SPEAKER_00: It centered on Mohammed Salem, foreign investor who sought Cypriot citizenship along with two relatives, Baha Salem and Ezra Salem, through the CIP.
• 0:42
  SPEAKER_00: While the Salems were the focus of the investigation, they did not stand trial.
• 0:48
  SPEAKER_00: Prosecutors targeted the facilitators of the citizenship applications.
• 0:52
  SPEAKER_00: The court ruled that prosecutors failed to prove conspiracy allegations against lawyers.
• 0:57
  SPEAKER_00: Photos Tsangaridis and Ellie Mikelado, Zavos Group Director Mikalis Michael, and companies PhC Tsangaridis LLC and Full Serve Secretarial Ltd.
• 1:08
  SPEAKER_00: While identifying irregularities in filed paperwork, the court determined these errors did not constitute intentional fraud.
• 1:16
  SPEAKER_00: Michalis Zavos, CEO of Lorena Estates Limited, and his company received convictions for fraudulent VAT evasion spanning three tax periods.
• 1:26
  SPEAKER_00: The unpaid VAT amounted to€335,296 euros, stemming from concealed invoices for apartment sales that did not qualify as permanent residences under the program's reduced tax requirements.
• 1:40
  SPEAKER_00: The verdict emerges amid broader investigations into Cyprus's CIP, which authorities terminated in 2020 following an Al Jazeera investigation exposing corruption in the approval process.
• 1:53
  SPEAKER_00: A special police team currently investigates approximately 100 cases involving problematic citizenship grants.
• 2:00
  SPEAKER_00: These investigations focus on individuals suspected of fraud or failing to meet investment requirements.
• 2:07
  SPEAKER_00: Salem and seven other individuals lost their Cyprus citizenship in August 2024 after investigators had uncovered discrepancies in their submitted personal data.
• 2:17
  SPEAKER_00: This action followed earlier citizenship revocations of Russian-Ukrainian billionaire Konstantin Grigorishin and oligarch Igor Kesaev.
• 2:27
  SPEAKER_00: The case highlighted ongoing concerns about the program's management.
• 2:31
  SPEAKER_00: A government inquiry completed in June 2021 revealed that 53% of the 6,779 passports granted between 2007 and 2020 violated legal requirements.
• 2:44
  SPEAKER_00: The inquiry pointed to widespread issues in due diligence and background checks.
• 2:48
  SPEAKER_00: The scandal reached the high levels of government, as former transport minister Marios Deretriades now faces over 50 charges related to corruption, bribery, and money laundering.
• 3:00
  SPEAKER_00: Opposition party Aickel argued the scandal extends beyond individual actors, arguing it was orchestrated and led by the Anastasiades DC government as a whole.
• 3:10
  SPEAKER_00: Akel challenges Demetriadis to disclose who he believes is responsible for the program's issues, emphasizing that the fish rots from the head.
• 3:20
  SPEAKER_00: This episode first appeared as an article by Ahmad Abbas on IMIDaily.com.
• 3:25
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• 3:32
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