Forensic pathologist Nikolaos Charalambous has been suspended following disciplinary proceedings related to his handling of the autopsy and post-mortem examination on the body of a 24-year-old foreign national found dead in Strovolos.
This is not the first time deficiencies and issues within the Forensic Service have been identified, yet no concrete steps appear to have been taken to modernise its operations or structure.
The urgent need for the Forensic Service’s independence and restructuring is evident, as reliance on the state, inadequate staffing, and long-standing administrative problems undermine both its credibility and the justice system.
Cases where forensic errors misled investigations
The case of Petrana Milkova
Petrana Milkova, a 46-year-old worker from Bulgaria, was found dead in a rural area of Geroskipou. Initially, police investigations suggested it was an accident involving agricultural machinery, as her body was found in poor condition. However, the initial autopsy complicated the case, forcing authorities to extend their investigation.
Subsequent autopsies, conducted by forensic experts brought in from abroad, reached a clear conclusion: Petrana succumbed to fatal dog bites. This finding overturned the initial accident theory and redirected the investigation.
Continuing their inquiries, police traced a 27-year-old man who owned an agricultural property near the site where the woman’s body was discovered. The property housed five Rottweiler dogs, two of which were found roaming outside their cages during the investigation.
The 27-year-old was charged with manslaughter and causing death by negligence. The case was referred directly to the Permanent Criminal Court for trial.
The case of the 28-year-old Ukrainian woman
The death of a 28-year-old Ukrainian woman, initially believed to be a femicide, turned out not to involve foul play, despite the arrest of her boyfriend.
Preliminary findings from forensic examiners initially pointed police investigations toward criminal involvement. The 31-year-old boyfriend was arrested, and two detention orders were secured against him. However, following directives from the Legal Service, the man was released.
Further analysis of scientific examinations and other evidence revealed that the death was not a result of criminal activity. These new findings emerged after the submission of an autopsy report conducted by Professor Charas Spiliopoulou, a forensic pathologist and toxicologist at the Medical School of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, on the body of the 28-year-old, who died in the Petra tou Romiou area.
The case of Thanasis
On the morning of 29 September 2005, Thanasis Nicolaou left for his military unit after an overnight leave. By midday, his family was informed by a National Guard member that the 26-year-old was missing and had not arrived at the camp. A few hours later, Thanasis was found dead beneath the Alassa bridge, a 30-metre-high structure. While his body showed no external injuries, his mouth was filled with sand, and bruises were visible on his hands—signs that raised suspicions of foul play.
Forensic pathologist Panicos Stavrinos, who handled the case, submitted his report nine months after Thanasis’s death, concluding that he had died from a fall and ruled out third-party involvement. The case was classified as a suicide. However, the family questioned the credibility of these findings, and in 2008, the Supreme Court annulled the initial forensic report.
In 2011, the Council of Ministers appointed two criminal investigators and forensic expert Marios Matsakis to re-examine the circumstances of Thanasis’s death. Matsakis concluded in 2012 that Thanasis’s injuries were inconsistent with a fall, leaving open the possibility of foul play. Subsequent reports by the investigators further reinforced suspicions of criminal activity.
Nevertheless, in 2014, the then Attorney General decided no further investigation was necessary, citing the elapsed time as a significant barrier to solving the case.
The Nicolaou family brought the case before the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR), which in 2020 condemned the Republic of Cyprus for its inadequate handling of the investigation.
In 2023, coroner Judge Doria Varosiotou accepted the findings the Nicolaou family had maintained for 19 years. In her detailed decision, the judge concluded that Thanasis had been strangled, confirming that his death was indeed a result of criminal activity.
The case of Christina Kalaitzidou
One of the most striking examples of forensic error was the death of young mother Christina Kalaitzidou, who was found dead in her apartment in Deryneia in March 2012. Her estranged husband eventually confessed to her murder and was convicted. However, the initial forensic report by pathologist Eleni Antoniou concluded that Kalaitzidou’s death resulted from injuries caused by a fire started by a lit cigarette on her bed. Antoniou explicitly ruled out foul play.
Kalaitzidou’s parents, convinced otherwise, secured a court order for the exhumation of her body in Thessaloniki, where she had been buried. A subsequent autopsy conducted in Greece revealed that Kalaitzidou was a victim of homicide, as her death was caused by asphyxiation due to strangulation.
The case of Giorgos Hadjidemetris
In another case, pathologist Eleni Antoniou was declared a hostile witness by the court and placed on two months’ suspension over her handling of the death of 14-year-old Giorgos Hadjidemetris, who passed away on 30 April 2001 during surgery at Nicosia General Hospital. In 2004, during her sworn testimony, Antoniou dismissed the contents of two written statements she had previously given to the police, which outlined the causes of the boy’s death.
The case also attracted criticism for state forensic pathologist Marios Matsakis. Although he had been paid by the victim’s family, Matsakis testified against them during the trial, further complicating the case.
The case of Aristoklis Patroklou
Another notable case involved forensic pathologist Sophocles Sophocleous in the murder of Aristoklis Patroklou from Kaminaria in January 2004. During the initial examination, Sophocleous concluded there were no signs of foul play. However, during the subsequent autopsy, shotgun pellets were discovered in the victim’s body.
Sophocleous attributed his oversight to the challenging conditions at the crime scene, citing darkness and muddy terrain as factors that hindered his initial assessment.
Also read: Hartsiotis: Cover-up allegations in 24-year-old’s death baseless
