In a strongly worded statement, Attorney General George Savvides said he would be referring lawyer Efstathios Efstathiou to the bar association for potential disciplinary offences, after the latter charged the legal service was corrupt all the way to the top – and may have even been bribed.
“We continue to bear witness to an ongoing unacceptable behaviour by lawyer Efstathios Efstathiou, who has repeatedly in the past few days publicly stated untrue allegations of corruption in the legal service.
“At times he suggested bribery, at other times a cover-up and criminal offences, from the top ranks of the legal service and its staffers.”
Consequences
Savvides’ statements come after Efstathiou sent a 12-page letter to President Nikos Christodoulides, accusing the AG, his deputy and the legal service itself of collaborating with a billionaire Russian oligarch to allow an allegedly illegal $113.4 million deal go unpunished.
Though the AG’s office published an initial denial of any corruption claims, Savvides reacted again two days later, saying he had contacted the head of the Cyprus Bar Association and told him he would share all of Efstathiou’s public statements within the day.
“The aim is to assess whether there are grounds to refer Mr. Efstathiou to the disciplinary board.”
In such a case, Savvides said he would excuse himself from any proceedings.
‘Shield of protection’
Efstathiou had claimed Russian oligarch Oleg Boyko said he spent three million in Cyprus to “sort out his case” and therefore had “nothing to be afraid of” after an arrest warrant was issued against him.
The AG dropped a criminal prosecution against Boyko citing insufficient witness material – which Efstathiou charged was an indication of corruption and the “shield of corruption” against the oligarch.
Efstathiou had also filed three separate reports to the anti-corruption authority, which in turn said it found no evidence to back his claims.
“I deny unequivocally, once again, Mr. Efstathiou’s claims,” the AG reiterated.
‘Tolerance has a limit’
In his latest statement, Savvides said that during his tenure as AG he demonstrated “enormous tolerance not only for criticism in good faith, which is an essential element of a modern democracy, but also a tolerance for insinuations and comments made in bad faith.
“The statements by Mr. Efstathiou for cover ups and corruption, which unfortunately are being repeated in media, have exceeded any limit of my tolerance.”
The AG said his duty is to protect the institution he served, as well as his colleagues.
“We will not allow any attempt to instrumentalise the legal service or exert pressure on its staff to serve personal, client or other schemes.”
Savvides was alluding to his allegations that Efstathiou was trying to use the letter to Christodoulides as a means to exert pressure that could pave the way for the benefit of his client.