After the dust settled from the parliamentary elections, attention is turning to two major cases that have attracted significant public interest and for which announcements regarding their outcome are expected. These concern the ‘Sandy’ case and the issues raised in the book ‘Mafia State’. A common element in both cases is Makarios Drousiotis. In the first case, the police launched an ex officio investigation following his post and his claims naming specific individuals, while in the second, he is the author of the book ‘Mafia State’.
Regarding the ‘Sandy’ case, it is considered a matter of days before the Police proceed with announcements on the results of the ex officio investigation and whether, after the study and evaluation of the file by the Legal Service, cases will be brought before the courts.
The Police consider that they now have a clear picture of all aspects of the case, including specific questions such as the manner and reasons for which the main figure in the case began to fabricate, as she herself stated in her testimony, the messages and the material accompanying them. The Legal Service, according to information, has completed its examination of the file, without any recommendations for further actions by the Police. It should be noted that from the day the ex officio investigation began, investigators at Police Headquarters were acting under instructions from the Legal Service, specifically from a State Prosecutor in the Criminal Law Division.
The question of whether the briefing on the ‘Sandy’ case would be carried out by the Police or the Legal Service has been resolved. It was decided that the update will be provided by the Police, as the investigation began on the orders of the Chief of Police Themistos Arnaoutis. The most likely scenario is that the briefing will be delivered by the Chief of Police himself.
There remains, however, the question of how far the briefing will go. Given that certain individuals have been publicly named, some have reacted, and some have even taken legal action against Makarios Drousiotis, the issue is whether further details will be disclosed during the briefing. This appears unlikely, particularly if criminal prosecutions are to be pursued, as it must be ensured that the case is not affected in any way. All of this will become clearer once the date of the briefing on the ‘Sandy’ case is announced.
Commitment for June
Within June, the Independent Authority Against Corruption has committed to making announcements regarding the ‘Mafia State’ case. The report of the four officials has been in the hands of the Authority for several weeks, and as announced, “the Authority will not comment on the content of the report, as the institutional procedures must first be followed, such as study of the report, its evaluation, and a decision by the Authority on its content”. According to the Authority’s statement issued on 5 May, “until the completion of the study of the report, all processes are conducted under conditions of complete confidentiality, as provided by law. After the completion of the above procedures, the Authority, in the context of transparency, will issue a detailed announcement on the content of the report. The timing of the announcement, due to the very large volume of material, cannot be precisely determined, but it will certainly be before the end of June 2026.”
This is, in any case, another serious case which, regardless of its final outcome, is expected to provoke reactions. This is mainly due to references either to the former President of the Republic Nikos Anastasiades or to other institutions of the Republic. It is recalled that Nicos Anastasiades himself chose to respond to the content of the book ‘Mafia State’ with his own book, titled ‘The Slanderer.’ The content of this book constitutes a response to the claims of Makarios Drousiotis made in ‘Mafia State.’
