A serious scandal in Cyprus's prison service is damaging public trust in the country's justice system. A fight between former senior prison bosses and their critics has led to claims of deep corruption. The problem started with an internal report but has now become a public war of words. People are alleging that the prison, which should reform and secure inmates, was actually a center for organizing serious crimes like murder and drug trafficking for almost ten years.
The scandal focuses on two former directors, Anna Aristotelous and Athena Demetriou. They ran the country's main prison for eight years. Their work was even shown positively in a Netflix documentary. However, everything changed when they reported a colleague for improper contact with a prisoner. Instead of being praised, they faced strong criticism and now find themselves very isolated.
Now, both sides are accusing each other of wrongdoing. New witnesses and evidence keep appearing. The accusations are very serious. They suggest that prisoners were running criminal networks from inside the prison, organizing crimes like blackmail, rape, and drug deals. It seems the line between prison guards and criminals became very unclear.
Different Justice Ministers have failed to stop this crisis. The public is losing faith in the security forces and the justice system. People are asking how this could happen and who is really in control of the prisons.
The former directors are now fighting to protect their reputations. Because the investigation is not finished and new stories keep emerging, the scandal continues. Until a full and independent investigation provides clear answers, people in Cyprus will doubt their prison system and the wider justice system.