A colourful figure of Nicosia in the mid-20th century, he was a petty con man who spent almost his entire life in prison. Every Nicosian knew him, and judges were said to regard him with a certain fondness because of his sharp-witted remarks, many of which continue to be repeated decades later. A street vendor by trade and effectively unemployed for most of his life, he appeared in court almost daily. By the time of his death, he had been convicted 107 times.
His real name was Georgios Antoniou Mavros, but no one knew him by that. He was universally known as Giorkos tis Kakas – Giorgos of Kyriaki. Kyriaki may have been his mother or his wife. In old Cyprus, it was not uncommon for a man to become known by his wife’s name.
He was born in Larnaca in 1913 and died in Nicosia on 16 April 1969 at the age of 56. His death was reported by the newspaper O Agon on 17 April 1969, which wrote: “One of the most well-known characters of Nicosia, Giorkos tis Kakas, whose favourite phrase was ‘I am but a handful of earth’, died last night.”
According to the same report, Giorkos was found dead in his home in Nicosia and his body was transferred to Nicosia General Hospital for a post-mortem examination. A taxi driver alerted the police after visiting his house on Rigenis Street and finding him dead. The report concluded: “Giorkos tis Kakas appeared many times before the courts, mainly for drunkenness and disorderly behaviour, but as he himself often said, he was a ‘good soul’.”
The post-mortem found that his death was caused by “cancer of the liver which had spread to his lungs – an illness resulting from the abuse of alcoholic beverages”.
His funeral took place on 17 April at the expense of Nicosia Municipality. Another report in O Agon, titled “No One Wept for Giorkos tis Kakas”, noted: “Forgotten by people, Giorkos tis Kakas was buried yesterday at the New Cemetery of Nicosia. He was the man who entertained Nicosians with his remarks, whether drunk or sober.”
The cemetery priest, Papapanagiotis Tsestos, conducted the service. No one was present to mourn him when the priest delivered the eulogy: “In your life you encountered joys and sorrows. I do not know whether your final moments were happy.”
Convicted 107 times
On 16 October 1966, Giorkos tis Kakas appeared before the Criminal Court charged with insulting and assaulting police officers. O Agon reported: “The accused politely removed his black hat, appeared before the court and gave the following statement: ‘Forgive me, Your Honour, I had a drink and got angry. I was disorderly. A thousand apologies.’”
Judge: “Your case is adjourned to 11 November 1966.”
Accused: “Very good… I like that. Democracy is on my side. England is finished…”
Most of Giorkos’s convictions occurred during British colonial rule, and this remark was widely seen as a mocking reference to the end of British rule following the EOKA struggle.
His 98th conviction was for assault, insult, drunkenness, indecent behaviour and disturbance of the peace. He appeared before Kyrenia District Court accused of attacking and insulting Michalis Lazarou Savva while drunk and causing a disturbance. According to press reports, Giorkos entered the courtroom with great dignity, opened the dock himself, greeted the judge, smiled at the audience, calmly listened to the charges, admitted them, and was informed by police that this marked his 98th conviction.
The court sentenced him to 20 days’ imprisonment, after which he was returned to prison, where he was already serving a three-month sentence for possession of processed Indian hemp.
“Did we slaughter someone?”
On 9 April 1968, a year before his death, Giorkos appeared before the district court facing four charges: assault, insult, drunkenness and causing public disturbance.
Judge: “Do you plead guilty, Giorgos?”
Accused (smiling): “Did we slaughter someone?”
Judge: “The case is adjourned to 10 March 1968. The accused will remain free on bail of £50.”
Accused: “Thank you, Your Honour!”
On 10 May 1968, Giorkos received his 107th conviction, after being found guilty of assaulting a police officer. His lawyer, Ioannis Mavronikolas, appealed for leniency, noting that his client had committed no offences in the previous eight months, “a record, given the frequency of his past offences”. He also said Giorkos expected to receive “a respectable sum” from the inheritance of an uncle, which might improve his circumstances.
“Maggots of the earth”
On 16 December 1968, Giorkos again appeared before Nicosia District Court accused of insulting Michalis Palalas by calling him “maggots of the earth” while drunk. He admitted guilt and was released on £75 bail. Despite his lengthy criminal record, the court allowed him to spend Christmas in the huts of Agios Pavlos prison.
Courtroom one-liners
Many of Giorkos tis Kakas’s quips have passed into local folklore. On one occasion, when a judge told him he drank too much, he replied: “Why do you care? Am I drinking from your barrel?”
Another time, after being acquitted, a judge told him: “Go in peace and don’t let me see you here again.” Giorkos replied: “Why, Your Honour – are you being transferred?”
On another day, he appeared in court as a witness rather than an accused. When the judge dismissed his testimony as hearsay, Giorkos let out a loud fart while leaving.
Judge: “Giorkos! What is this behaviour? I’ll send you to prison!”
Giorkos: “Why, Your Honour? What did I do?”
Judge: “You farted in court!”
Giorkos: “Did you see it?”
Judge: “No, but I heard it.
Giorkos: “Then your testimony is hearsay and doesn’t count.”
He left with his head held high.
Source: Polygnotis