Supreme court rules in favour of Georgian illegal

THE SUPREME Court yesterday shortened a sentence for a Georgian man jailed for entering and residing on the island illegally.

According to the prosecution, 50-year-old Otar Gundaze had entered the island illegally despite having a Cypriot wife because the Cyprus Embassy in Georgiou would not give him a visa. Gundaze then flew to Istanbul instead before flying to the airport in occupied Tympou.

He crossed over to the south last year and met up with his wife, a Cypriot living in Paphos.

The Immigration Services on the island only became aware of the man’s presence a year later when both he and his wife went to the Immigration Department in Paphos. He was immediately arrested and detained at the Nicosia Central Prison.
State prosecutors had charged him with entering the island illegally and residing illegally in the Republic of Cyprus.

Gundaze was sentenced to two months’ imprisonment last February for entering the island illegally and five months for residing on the island illegally.

But Gundaze’s defence lawyer, Alexandros Alexandrou, appealed the court decision, with regards to the second charge claiming that five months was too much.
The three-judge Supreme Court panel agreed with the defence claim, stating that five months would not serve the interests of justice for the accused.
“The defence made reference to the man’s human rights not only with regards to the length of the sentence but also to the fact that he was married to a Cypriot,” read a Supreme Court announcement.

“We are all in agreement that the defence has succeeded in proving to us that the sentence for the second charge was disproportionate. For the second charge, the accused will serve a two-month sentence.”