Cyprus Mail: Press Review in English, 98-08-08

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From: The Cyprus Mail at <http://www.cynews.com/>

Saturday, August 08, 1998

Investigations close in on bishop

THE ALLEGED shady business dealings of Chrysanthos, Bishop of Limassol, continued to grab the headlines in yesterday's dailies.

According to Machi, the arrest of the Bishop was only a matter of hours away. British authorities had already issued a warrant for the cleric's arrest after four British detectives sat in as local officers questioned Chrysanthos for eight hours on Wednesday, the paper stated. The Bishop, aware that he could be arrested, had cancelled a trip to Stockholm he was due to take next week.

The paper quoted Attorney-general Alecos Markides as ruling out the possibility of Chrysanthos being extradited to face trial in London. The cleric could only be tried in a local court, Markides said.

Machi said it had "information" that legal authorities were to seek a court order allowing them to investigate the Bishop's personal bank accounts in London and Brussels.

The Bishop was being investigated for a total of 26 suspected cases of money laundering and fraud.

Alithia reported that a bulky document detailing these 26 alleged misdemeanours had been handed to the Holy Synod by police. Gold and billions of US dollars gleaned from the suspect dealings were stored away in 12 accounts the Bishop had abroad, the paper reported.

Phileleftheros reported that two of the cases the Bishop had been implicated in could lead to criminal charges being brought against him.

The paper also reported that the Bishop's name had been linked to the transport of Church treasures out of Bosnia during the civil war. The removal of the diamonds, holy relics and gold may not constitute any form of offence, the paper stated, but the new report indicated just how wide the Bishop's activities spread.

Phileleftheros also reported that Justice Minister Nicos Koshis had admitted before the House ad hoc crime committee that certain police officers were on the take. These bad apples were not only accepting bribes to turn a blind eye to underworld activities but also, in some cases, actively co-operating with shady cabaret owners and even pimps, the committee was told.

Visiting Greek deputy Foreign Minister Yiannos Kranidiotis had dismissed reports he had brought with him a US proposal for the establishment of a no- fly zone over Cyprus, Simerini reported.

It was widely expected that Kranidiotis would present the government with details of a proposal the US ambassador in Athens, Nicolas Burns, had tabled. But the paper said Kranidiotis had stated on arrival late Thursday that he had no such proposal in his briefcase. His visit was of an entirely private nature, the Greek deputy minister was quoted by Simerini as stating.

© Copyright Cyprus Mail 1998

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