Fraud Convictions Didn’t Stop This Lawyer From Building a Bustling Practice in Cyprus
Cypriot authorities stalled for 13 years on a European Arrest Warrant filed by the U.K., where Christos Christodoulides absconded from prison. They finally let him serve the remainder of his sentence under house arrest in Cyprus, OCCRP report.
He was jailed in the U.K. for immigration fraud in a scandal that brought down a cabinet minister. He then absconded from prison, and resurfaced in Cyprus where he was later convicted for selling fake visas.
None of that has stopped Christos “Chris” Christodoulides from building a bustling immigration law practice in the Cypriot capital of Nicosia. In fact, he recently announced plans to expand to two more cities.
Reporters have obtained leaked emails related to Britain’s attempt to extradite Christodoulides, as well as legal documents from Cyprus, which tell the story of his misadventures in both countries.
Despite his criminal convictions, Christodoulides is still licensed to practice law in Cyprus. He even managed to renew his law license while serving out the remainder of his U.K. sentence under house arrest in Cyprus, reporters discovered.
But the Cyprus Bar Association is about to take action.
Internal documents obtained by reporters show that the bar association has accused him of behavior that is “disgraceful or incompatible with the legal profession.” Christodoulides faces a hearing in November, and could lose his license to practice law.
In addition to his immigration fraud convictions in the U.K. and Cyprus, Christodoulides was convicted of conspiracy in a human trafficking case. But the charges were dismissed upon appeal, with a Cypriot judge ruling that Christodoulides could not be convicted based primarily on the testimony of a defendant in the case.
Christodoulides declined
