British Interpol seek bishop on fraud inquiry

By Charlie Charalambous

BISHOP Chrysanthou of Limassol has been linked to a British police investigation into a conspiracy to defraud $3.7 million from an investor.

British Interpol have contacted Cyprus police requesting their co-operation in cracking the scam; they want the bishop to be questioned as part of the enquiry.

“I can confirm that we have received a request from British Interpol for our co-operation in a case of attempted fraud in which the bishop (Chrysanthou) has been named,” CID chief Nathaniel Papageorgiou told the Cyprus Mail yesterday.

Chrysanthou’s name was mentioned after three Britons were arrested in London for allegedly attempting to defraud a British businessman of $3.7 million.

They apparently offered the businessman a bogus 300 per cent return on his investment and said they represented the bishop who would act as the guarantor, according to witness statements.

“We are collecting evidence from the British authorities, which we will study carefully before deciding on our course of action,” Papageorgiou said.

According to reports, the British suspects claim the money was deposited at a Cypriot bank in London then channelled to an offshore bank in Cyprus.

The suspects also allege that the bishop and another wanted Briton are co- owners of a US company with capital valued at $200 million.

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.