Officials are calling an assault inside the Limassol Criminal Court “extremely serious”, after a convicted offender attacked and punched a state prosecutor, forcing her transfer to a private hospital by ambulance. The incident has reignited debate over security for members of the Law Office, particularly the procedures governing the movement of defendants inside court buildings and their presence without handcuffs.
Defendant punched prosecutor while exiting courtroom
The attack happened on Friday morning. Moments earlier, the defendant had heard his sentence of four‑years’ imprisonment for kidnapping a woman. As he exited the courtroom, he walked directly past the bench of the prosecuting lawyer, where he suddenly struck her in the face and head with his fists. Two MMAD (riot unit) officers escorting him immediately intervened and restrained him.
The layout of the courtroom means defendants, lawyers and others involved in proceedings use the same entrance. An ambulance arrived on site and transported the injured prosecutor to a Limassol hospital for further examinations.
The Penal Code includes a provision allowing a sentence of up to four years for causing actual bodily harm to a public official performing their duties. Police have opened an investigation, while an administrative inquiry will also examine the actions of officers responsible for escorting the defendant.
Savvides reacts immediately
Attorney General George Savvides reacted swiftly, issuing a written statement before travelling to Limassol to visit the injured prosecutor in hospital. He then met with Assistant Police Director of Operations Marinos Vassiliou to receive a briefing from police on the assault and ongoing investigations.
“I want to condemn this cowardly attack against an officer of justice, a colleague, a prosecutor,” Savvides said. He noted this was the third recent attack against members of the Law Office, recalling a bomb and arson attack in Paphos. “We are not doing well; it seems our society is not doing well,” he said, stressing that the attack was “a very serious incident” because it occurred inside a courtroom.
A high‑level meeting followed yesterday afternoon at the Law Office, attended by the Chief of Police, the Justice Minister and the Deputy Attorney General, to discuss safety measures for legal officers. Savvides said the nature of the incident “clearly indicates that we must review various protocols, including how defendants are transported to the courts and how they move inside the buildings, so that such incidents are minimised in future.”
Asked whether discussion would reopen on whether defendants should remain handcuffed inside the courtroom, Savvides confirmed that the issue was raised in discussions with the Limassol police leadership and will be considered further by the Law Office in coordination with the Supreme Court. “I also had a telephone conversation this morning with the President of the Supreme Court regarding the incident,” he added.