A 25-YEAR-OLD Chinese asylum seeker was yesterday sentenced to a year in jail for running a brothel and exploiting prostitutes.
But what stood out in the court’s decision was a special tribute to the two officers who took part in a sting operation and subsequently testified in court.
“It is rare in prostitution cases for the police testimony to be so solid and steadfast.
“I am impressed by the police operation, which was flawless and irreproachable and was executed to the last detail,” the judge said.
The defendant, Qi Xiao Done, was arrested on December 17 last year along with two Chinese women, also asylum seekers, aged 24 and 40.
Their arrests followed a police sting operation in which officers, who had information that a flat on Grivas Street in Nicosia was being used as a brothel, managed to set up an appointment to visit the place on the specific date.
The three defendants chose not to say anything after the court decided there was a case against them in relation to the 10 charges they faced, which included conspiracy to commit a misdemeanour, operating a brothel, exploitation of prostitutes, and pimping.
The judge decided the involvement of the two women had not been substantiated to the degree that would prove the charges against them.
The brothel was operated by Qi and the involvement of the women, according to what the witnesses described, was undisputed but did not justify their conviction, the court said.
The two women were acquitted of all charges while Qi was found guilty on three counts: running a brothel and two relating to prostitute exploitation.
His lawyer Nicolas Syllouris asked for the court’s leniency, expressing the defendant’s remorse and promise to abide by the law.
Syllouris said his client was the first Chinese asylum seeker.
He left China due to his political beliefs and had been involved in several student movements in his home country, the court heard.
The defendant went to college for a while but was forced to drop out due to money problems.
But the judge stressed the need for deterrence, as offences of such a nature were on the rise, causing concern to society.
On top of that, Cyprus has been censured by the international community on several occasions regarding the prostitution situation on the island, the court said.
Inevitably imprisonment was the only suitable penalty, which would also give a message to others contemplating engaging in similar activities, the judge added.
Qi was sentenced to six months in jail for operating a brothel and a year each on the other two counts.
The sentences run concurrently and include the 45 days already served in detainment.
