THE ELECTRICITY Authority of Cyprus (EAC) yesterday decided to submit close to 150 cases of fraud to the Attorney-General’s office following extensive research after a scam was discovered in which electricity meters were being tampered with to produce lower readings, resulting in up to £1.5 million in lost revenue.
EAC spokesman Costas Gavrielides told the Cyprus Mail, “The EAC feels it has done a very good job regarding this large and difficult task of gathering evidence for the 150 cases (involved in the scam). As far as the criminal proceedings against the accused, it is now a matter for the police and the Attorney-general. We will now concentrate on the recovery of our money.”
Initial police investigations led to 71-year-old retired EAC technician Michalis Masouras, the facilitator of the fraud, who was found guilty of making a press to produce forged EAC seals, which were placed on the meters to cover up the tampering. Masouras was jailed for his part in the scam earlier this year.
Since the fraud emerged, the EAC has carried out a full investigation to discover the identity of everybody involved and has been in contact with them in an attempt to recover money owed.
“Five of them have responded positively (by agreeing to pay), resulting in the recovery of £193,000,” said Gavrielides. “The opportunity has been given to them to pay in instalments.”
Nine of the accused have filed counter claims against the EAC in the Supreme Court, including one claim that effectively contests the right to issue estimated bills.
A further 86 of the accused have refused to enter into any form of correspondence with the EAC, “They have even refused to accept registered letters sent by us,” said Gavrielides This has prompted the EAC to make further attempts to contact them through high-level management figures in an attempt to recover the money. “They will be patient enough to explain the situation to them and invite them to present any evidence they may have with regards to what they have been charged or if they feel our estimates were inaccurate,” said Gavrielides, “But we will use all legal means available to us to recover what was stolen.”
In the event that payment is still not forthcoming, the board of directors at the EAC has decided “to add the amount of stolen energy to their bi-monthly bills. If they still refuse to enter into negotiations for the amount demanded it will become payable immediately, as it is for everyone who receives an electricity bill, and in the event of it not being paid within the normal timeframe to pay the bill, then, unfortunately, we will be left with no alternative but to cut off the supply. Simultaneously, civil proceedings will be initiated against them in another effort to reclaim the money.
“I’m not in a position to comment on how the police or the Attorney-general will act on the evidence that has been presented before them, but I feel we have amassed enough evidence for them to carry out a criminal investigation against them,” added Gavrielides.
The Cyprus Mail is the only English-language daily newspaper published in Cyprus. It was established in 1945 and today, with its popular and widely-read website, the Cyprus Mail is among the most trusted news sites in Cyprus. The newspaper is not affiliated with any political parties and has always striven to maintain its independence. Over the past 70-plus years, the Cyprus Mail, with a small dedicated team, has covered momentous events in Cyprus’ modern history, chronicling the last gasps of British colonial rule, Cyprus’ truncated independence, the coup and Turkish invasion, and the decades of negotiations to stitch the divided island back together, plus a myriad of scandals, murders, and human interests stories that capture the island and its -people. Observers describe it as politically conservative.
