UK woman accused of making up Cyprus gang-rape claims has conviction quashed | Cyprus

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A British woman accused of fabricating claims of being gang-raped in a holiday resort on Cyprus has had the conviction overturned by the Mediterranean island’s supreme court.

Two years after the then teenager received a suspended four-month sentence for fomenting public mischief, the tribunal threw out the case, acknowledging she had not been given a fair trial.

“This is a watershed moment,” said Michael Polak of the legal aid group Justice Abroad, who had coordinated the appeal against the conviction. “Not just for our client who has always maintained her innocence even when doing so caused her the hardship of not being able to return home during the lengthy trial dates, but also for others round the world in similar positions.”

The student, who is now 21, had claimed she was ganged-raped by up to 12 Israelis in a hotel room in Ayia Napa in July 2019. She had threatened to go to the European court of human rights if the attempt to clear her name before Cyprus’ supreme court had failed.

The guilty verdict had hinged on a written confession in which the teenager had withdrawn the complaint but which her defense team argued was extracted under duress in the absence of a lawyer or translator after eight hours of police questioning.

Although not in Nicosia for the verdict, the young woman, who has never been publicly identified, welcomed the outcome in a statement issued by her mother.

“It is a great relief we hear that the authorities in Cyprus have recognised the flaws in their legal process,” the statement said. “Whilst this decision doesn’t excuse the way she was treated by the police, or the judge or those in authority, it does bring with it the hope that my daughter’s suffering will at least bring positive changes in the way victims of crime are treated .”

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