By Jean Christou
THE WIFE of a convicted killer yesterday began a hunger strike at the offices of the Attorney-general, saying she would remain there until her husband was released or until she died.
Mary Christodoulou, 35, the wife of Ierotheos Christodoulou, alias Ropas, began her hunger strike at 7am in the lobby of Attorney-general Alecos Markides’ offices, accompanied by her eight-year-old son. She said her 15- year-old daughter would be joining them later in the day.
Ropas was sentenced to life imprisonment on manslaughter charges over two years ago. His appeal to the Supreme Court was later turned down, but now his spouse says she has new evidence that could reverse the guilty verdict.
” I’ll stay here until they take my husband out of prison,”she told the Cyprus Mailyesterday. ” They condemned my husband without presenting the evidence.”
Christodoulou said the authorities were refusing to chase down the real guilty parties in the killing and refusing to look at the evidence.
” There is no chance of retrying the case so I came here so that the Attorney-general’s office can assume its responsibilities and admit they were wrong,”she added.
” They delayed too much and the evidence was lost and they have denied my husband his right to prove himself innocent, not only once but many times. My husband is in jail because of the trickery of the police. His first lawyer sold out and co-operated with the police and now because so many have a responsibility in all this, they all have to be covered up, but I’m going to stay on huger strike until I get my husband out – even if it means death.”
The recent publicity in the Ropas case last week prompted Markides to say that under Cyprus law, no retrial could be held after an appeals court had rejected a defendant’s plea.
In the event the new evidence did appear to clear Ropas, a presidential pardon would be the only way for the convict to get out of jail, Markides said. However, a pardon would still mean a convict remained guilty as charged, even though new evidence might suggest otherwise.
Markides said he would examine any new evidence brought to his attention and on that basis would decide whether or not to recommend to the President that Ropas be pardoned.
