A new adjournment to 13 February at 09:00 has been granted in the case of monks Nektarios and Porphyrios, which concerns the financial aspect of the scandal involving the Holy Monastery of Saint Avvakoum.
The two monks appeared today before the Permanent Criminal Court in Nicosia, where their defence lawyer requested an adjournment, citing the pending delivery of evidentiary material from the Prosecution, expected within the week, which needs to be reviewed to prepare their defence against the charges.
The Prosecution raised no objection, and the Court deemed the three-week period a reasonable timeframe.
The Court ordered that the defendants remain free under the same terms.
The two monks face 24 charges, including conspiracy to defraud, committing a felony, unlawful possession of property worth €196,000, theft by proxy, forgery, circulation of forged documents, theft, money laundering, false tax declarations, and interfering with judicial proceedings.
It is noted that all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Also read: Archbishop on Avvakoum: Believers’ displeasure understandable