Paphos land developer accuses Phedonos of rape

Paphos land developer Theodoros Aristodemou said on Tuesday that he has given a detailed statement to police accusing Paphos mayor Phedonas Phedonos of being “a rapist and a blackmailer”.

Aristodemou confirmed that he was questioned by investigators as part of a criminal complaint against the mayor that police have stressed is distinct from an ongoing probe into allegations of domestic abuse involving the mayor’s wife.

Speaking on Sigma TV, Aristodemou said he had publicly accused Phedonos around ten years ago of being “a rapist and a blackmailer”, and that he never withdrew those claims.

“I reported them on television on the programme that existed at the time on CyBC. I didn’t feel that I needed to make another complaint,” he said.

He added that he had openly challenged the mayor to take legal action against him. “At that time, with my complaint, I challenged him to sue me so that I could prove it in court. He neither took me, nor did he take action against me,” Aristodemou said.

Asked whether the statement he gave to police this week could substantiate a criminal case, he declined to speculate.

“I cannot express that position. I said what I believe is correct,” he said.

Aristodemou said he has not been in contact with the alleged victim who had originally confided the complaint to him.

“I have not come into contact with any other person. It is a case that was referred to at that time,” he said, referring to the period when the allegations were first raised publicly.

He insisted he had always been willing to cooperate with authorities. “I was willing, as I had said, to report what I reported on television to any authority,” he said. “In my opinion, my testimony was specific.”

In separate comments, Aristodemou said he also named other individuals in his statement who he claims were aware of the alleged incident.

“I have also given some other names who probably knew the matter,” he said, adding that he expects further witnesses to be called by police.

Police confirmed on Tuesday that CID investigations are continuing with statements and the assessment of evidence following the businessman’s complaint against the mayor.

Police spokesman Vyron Vyronas said all information is being evaluated and that necessary actions will be taken once the assessment is complete.

The interior ministry is awaiting an official response from police before deciding whether the circumstances meet the legal threshold under Article 113 of the municipalities law, which allows for the suspension of a mayor in cases involving serious offences.

Authorities have repeatedly clarified that the businessman’s allegations concern a different matter from the separate investigation into alleged abuse involving the mayor’s wife.

That case was reopened following the circulation of alleged medical documents online.

Both the mayor and his wife have denied any violence, with his wife saying publicly: “Those who know me in my workplace, family and social environment know that I am not a victim.”

Phedonos has described the investigations as politically motivated, speaking of a “merciless war” against him by what he called an “alliance of political entanglements and organised crime”.

The developments have already had institutional repercussions with a scheduled session of the Paphos municipal council having been suspended on Monday after several councillors withdrew or abstained from attending, citing the pending decision of the interior ministry.

In a joint letter, councillors said the move was taken “not as a judgment on the merits or disrespect for the presumption of innocence of the mayor, but out of institutional prudence and respect for the process and society”.

Police said investigations into the current complaints are ongoing and that no conclusions have yet been reached.

Aristodemou himself is a well-known land developer in Paphos and has previously had serious disputes with the municipality.

In 2014, he, his wife and two associates were referred for trial before the criminal court in connection with alleged fraud involving the demarcation of 177 plots of land in the Skali area of Paphos.

The case concerned accusations that approved plans were switched, resulting in thousands of square metres of land originally designated as green space being reassigned to a development company.

The four were later cleared by the Paphos criminal court in 2015 of charges including forgery, conspiracy abuse of power and bribery.

The supreme court upheld the court’s finding in 2019, rejecting a state appeal against the acquittal of Aristodemou, asserting that prosecutors had failed to prove intent to defraud beyond reasonable doubt, ruling that while irregularities existed in the paperwork, there was “no deliberate attempt to secure planning permission under false pretences”.