One year after the publication of the Inquiry Committee's report into the fatal Takata airbag scandal, the police investigative team handling the criminal probe has narrowed its focus to a small number of individuals and entities.
The investigation is now centred on three individuals and one company, with the Law Office instructing investigators to obtain statements as part of efforts to determine whether serious criminal offences were committed through decisions, actions or omissions linked to the case.
The final decision on whether criminal charges will be filed, including potential charges of manslaughter or causing death by negligence, will be taken by the Attorney-General, in consultation with the Deputy Attorney-General and Elena Kleopa, head of the Criminal Law Division.
What remains undisputed is that two young people lost their lives because of defective Takata airbags: 24-year-old Kyriakos Oxinos, who died in Nicosia on 24 January 2023, and 19-year-old Styliani Georgalli, who died on the Avgorou-Frenaros road on 21 October 2024.
Two former Road Transport Department directors under scrutiny
Investigators have examined the actions of two former directors of the Road Transport Department (TOM), both of whom the Inquiry Committee recommended should face criminal scrutiny.
The two are Sotiris Kolettas, who served as director from 2006 to 2019, and Yiannis Nikolaides, who succeeded him and remained in the position until June 2023 before being promoted to permanent secretary level within government.
The Inquiry Committee recommended criminal examination of the two men for what it described as failures throughout their tenure.
According to the report, those failures included:
Failure to take action despite knowledge of the risks
The committee concluded that although they knew, or ought to have known, about the dangers posed by Takata airbags, they failed to take substantive measures to protect motorists, limiting their actions to forwarding updated vehicle ownership information to manufacturers' distributors.
A 2017 departmental circular covered only vehicles with European Type Approval, leaving recall procedures for used vehicles imported from third countries, particularly Japan and Singapore, largely unregulated.
A flawed institutional approach
The report found that a distorted and potentially dangerous interpretation of the department's role developed during Kolettas' tenure and continued under Nikolaides.
Under that approach, the department viewed its responsibility as merely providing vehicle-owner data to manufacturers' representatives, while considering product recalls to be solely the responsibility of vehicle manufacturers.
Repeated warnings allegedly ignored
According to the report, the department received repeated warnings from the Consumer Protection Service as early as 2013 regarding the risks posed by Takata airbags.
It also received letters from members of the public in 2015 and 2016 highlighting international recall campaigns involving millions of vehicles.
Despite this, the Inquiry Committee concluded that the two former directors displayed what it described as "inexcusable inaction and indifference" in assessing the risks and failed to inform the public or take measures to protect motorists.
Former directors reject allegations
In their testimony before the Inquiry Committee, both former directors adopted a similar line of defence.
They argued that they were not the competent authorities responsible for vehicle recalls involving defective Takata airbags and therefore could not be held responsible for the failures that led to the deaths of Oxinos and Georgalli.
The Inquiry Committee rejected that position, leading to its recommendation for criminal scrutiny.
Vafeades also being examined
Although the Inquiry Committee did not attribute responsibility to current Transport Minister Alexis Vafeades, whose tenure included the second fatal incident involving a Takata airbag, investigators have nevertheless included him among those being examined.
The move stems from testimony given by Yiannos Oxinos, father of Kyriakos Oxinos, who told the Inquiry Committee that he personally informed Vafeades of the dangers posed by Takata airbags three months after his son's death.
According to his testimony, the minister and his ministry reacted slowly.
The meeting took place on 25 April 2023, during which, according to Yiannos Oxinos, it became apparent that Vafeades was not fully aware of the scale of the problem.
"I gave them the information and asked them to investigate it because otherwise we would be mourning more victims," he told the committee.
Eighteen months passed between that meeting and the death of Styliani Georgalli in October 2024.
One of the key questions now under examination is whether the second tragedy could have been avoided had stronger measures and more comprehensive public warnings been implemented during that period.
Vafeades rejects the allegations and maintains that, once informed of the issue in 2023, efforts were continuously made to facilitate recalls affecting nearly 90,000 vehicles.
Investigations ongoing since 2023
The criminal investigations did not begin with publication of the Inquiry Committee's report last year.
They have been ongoing since the two fatal incidents occurred.
For this reason, relatives of the victims continue to question how much longer they must wait before responsibility is assigned and those deemed responsible are held accountable.
Kyriakos Oxinos died in a road collision on Griva Digeni Avenue in Engomi on 24 January 2023.
Nine months later, a police report concluded that his death had been caused by the defective Takata airbag installed in his vehicle.
Despite that finding, the issue did not initially receive the attention many believe it deserved from the authorities.
Public awareness grew largely through the campaign led by Oxinos' mother, Maria Loui, whose efforts, supported by media coverage, brought the dangers posed by Takata airbags into the public spotlight.
That pressure eventually forced authorities to address the problem more seriously.
However, the measures implemented failed to prevent another fatality.
Styliani Georgalli died on 21 October 2024 following a collision on the Avgorou-Frenaros road.
Post-mortem findings concluded that she died from haemorrhagic shock caused by rupture of the ascending aorta and lung, injuries linked to a metal fragment believed to have been propelled from the defective Takata airbag.
The second tragedy intensified questions about delays, omissions and the responsibilities of those charged with addressing a safety defect that had been known internationally for years.
