THE TRIAL of two high ranking officials, accused of embezzling funds from the Archbishopric, continued yesterday with one of the chief accountants called in to testify.
The two men on trial, Iosif Demetriou Aristodemou, a relative and once chauffeur of former Archbishop Chrysostomos, and Chrysostomos Philippou, chief accountant at the Archbishopric, are accused of stealing vast amounts of money from the Church by forging the Archbishop’s initials and handwriting.
Another accountant, Elias Demetriou, committed suicide a few days after being questioned by detectives in connection with the case in December 2003.
Both defendants face 14 charges, including forgery, circulating falsified documents, theft, obtaining money under false pretences, concealment and conspiracy to commit a crime.
The trial revolves around separate instances where the Archbishopric disbursed £592,000 for the purchase of four tracts of land in Nicosia and Paphos; the money actually received by the sellers amounted to £305,000, a shortfall of £287,000.
Yesterday, State Prosecutor Rikkos Mappourides called in accountant Demos Demou, who was working in the same office as Philippou.
Under questioning from defence lawyer Efstathios Efstathiou, Demou spoke of his acquaintance with Philippou, describing him as a good colleague and a man who was thorough at his job.
“He would also inspect the books that I was keeping on the accounts”, added Demou.
The accountant then told the court that the official writer of a cheque, according to legislation, was the one who signed the cheque.
Much is expected to be debated and discussed between the prosecution and the defence, with regards the signatures on the cheques.
The prosecution is arguing that the defendants took advantage of the Archbishop’s deteriorating condition, in which his signatures were also getting more and more mangled, and began forging the cheques.
The former Archbishop suffers from Alzheimer’s, and has for years been unable to perform his duties.
The suspects deny all charges.
Previously, the court had heard the Administrative Director of the Archbishopric, Frixos Cleanthous, speak of the “close and special relationship” between the ailing Archbishop and Aristodemou.
Cleanthous also spoke of the Archbishop’s deteriorating health while more was heard yesterday from Demou, who told the court that the Archbishopric had at many times paid for the Archbishop’s medical fees abroad.
“I know of an instance before 1995 in which the Archbishop was flown to Spain for an operation on his vocal chords,” said Demou.
Apart from his problem of Alzheimer’s, Demou also spoke of the Archbishop’s frequent trips abroad for treatment of various health problems, including heart surgery.
Yesterday’s proceedings finished prematurely after Mappourides requested an adjournment postponement because all four of his witness could not show up for various personal reasons.
The trial continues today.
