Nikitas: police did not supply sufficient evidence for lifting Matsakis immunity

THE Attorney-general yesterday passed the buck onto the police concerning the investigation of the case of MEP Marios Matsakis, who is accused of asking for £10,000 to ensure a police officer under investigation for attempted manslaughter would be acquitted.

The story was broken by Politis, which also claimed that Attorney-general Solon Nikitas had refused to act on the case.

Yesterday, Nikitas issued a written statement telling his side of the story.

Nikitas said he had been informed about the allegations against Matsakis through an April 29 letter from the chief of police.

According to the letter, Nikitas said, the allegations were initially made by the police officer in question to his superior and from then on to the chain of command.

Nikitas replied the next day.

He said that after studying the letter and in light of the constitutional and legal provisions concerning the lifting of immunity of a deputy, he judged that it was impossible to act based on the verbal claims transmitted from one person to another.

He stressed, however, that if evidence was secured to put together a solid case, the issue would be reviewed.

“Since then, there was no contact whatsoever with the legal service on behalf of the police and no other evidence was provided,” Nikitas said.

“It is clear that the public claims of the alleged refusal of the Attorney-general to act in the framework of his authority do not correspond to reality,” the statement said.

But one legal expert was adamant that the officer’s testimony should have been enough for procedures to start.

The expert said the evidence – taped conversations between Matsakis and the officer –should be accepted in court.

There was nothing illegal about them, the expert said, challenging those who suggest otherwise to point out which law they based their argument on.

The police did not have to ask for permission before they wired the officer to tape the conversations with Matsakis, he added, though they did often seek legal advice in such cases.

The Cyprus Mail is the only English-language daily newspaper published in Cyprus. It was established in 1945 and today, with its popular and widely-read website, the Cyprus Mail is among the most trusted news sites in Cyprus. The newspaper is not affiliated with any political parties and has always striven to maintain its independence. Over the past 70-plus years, the Cyprus Mail, with a small dedicated team, has covered momentous events in Cyprus’ modern history, chronicling the last gasps of British colonial rule, Cyprus’ truncated independence, the coup and Turkish invasion, and the decades of negotiations to stitch the divided island back together, plus a myriad of scandals, murders, and human interests stories that capture the island and its -people. Observers describe it as politically conservative.