Hefty seven-year sentence aims to stamp out new breed of financial crime
HIGH-PROFILE stockbroker Yiannos Andronikou was yesterday jailed for seven years for stealing almost £5 million from a pension fund belonging to the Electricity Authority of Cyprus (EAC).
Andronikou, 47, has been in police custody since September 28, when the Nicosia Criminal Court found him guilty of the theft of £4.88 million from the EAC fund and concealment.
The offences were committed between 2003 and 2005.
His company, Suphire Securities & Financial Services, was also found guilty and yesterday ordered to pay a fine of £200,000.
Andronikou’s defence is expected to launch an appeal today.
Andronikou’s wife Rea, who is co-owner of Suphire, was cleared of related charges.
The case dates back to 2004, when EAC auditors discovered that official stock market figures on the fund’s portfolio for the year did not correspond to those provided by Suphire.
It later emerged that Suphire had invested the sums from the pension fund in shares on the stock market.
Yesterday, Andronikou looked on impassively from the dock as the three-judge panel informed him that the court had no option but to impose an immediate sentence of imprisonment.
“Despite the fact that the money stolen was in the interest of the first defendant [Suphire] and not the second defendant [Andronikou], the court cannot ignore the role that the second defendant had with regards to the offences,” said Judge Lena Demetriadou-Andreou.
The court had ruled in a previous hearing that it was Suphire that reaped from the offence and not Andronikou.
“More specifically,” the judge continued, “Suphire, which was acting as the legal representative, conducted its duties with regards to the third agreement to manage the fund, managing the portfolio of the pension fund, presenting the progress and finance statements to the pension fund managing committee of the EAC and the transferring of funds from the fund, via Andronikou.
“Therefore, it was Andronikou who had the exclusively active role with regards to the activities of Suphire which ultimately led to the offences.”
The court described the theft from the fund as a new style of financial crime, which had emerged since the rise of the Cyprus Stock Exchange (CSE).
“Perhaps this case is just an example of the new type of financial crimes that have emerged following the introduction of the CSE, and that is something which should cause particular concern to the courts who should use their authority to stamp out such phenomena with the use of strict penalties,” said Judge Demetriadou-Andreou.
“These phenomena lead to the abuse of trust of investors, who give their money in good faith, in order to profiteer.”
The court dismissed suggestions made by the defence in mitigation that the case was only being tried at the criminal court because of Andronikou’s status.
Friends and relatives hugged and kissed Andronikou as he was escorted back to the temporary police cell in the court building.
