Woman jailed for hiring illegal workers

THE OWNER of a small confectionary business was jailed for two months by a Nicosia Court yesterday for hiring illegal workers.

Androulla Mavromattis, 46, had pleaded guilty to three counts of hiring three Filipina women who were illegally residing on the island.

The three women, aged 30, 41 and 27, had already pleaded guilty to two counts of illegal residence and were previously jailed for one month.

According to State Prosecutor Anna Yiallourou, a police officer had entered the confectionary on the morning of June 7 this year and found the three foreign women cooking in the kitchen which is situated in the Acropolis area of Nicosia.

“All women said they worked for the fourth defendant (Mavromattis) and, after not producing the necessary work permits, they were taken to the local police station where they were charged,” said the prosecutor.

“The fourth defendant was not at the shop at the time but arrived at the police station later the same day after being telephoned by the investigator.”

Mavromattis was later charged at Omorfita police station where she told investigators, “Anything I have to say, I will to say to the court.”

Yesterday, Judge Angelos David jailed the woman to two months imprisonment for the three charges against her. Upon being sentenced, she burst into tears. Her sentence begins immediately.

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