Supreme Court rejects appeal in “human trafficking” case

The Supreme Court of Cyprus upheld the acquittal in the human trafficking case of a 21-year-old man arrested in 2023 for operating a boat carrying 32 migrants heading towards the Cypriot coast. The Attorney General’s appeal was dismissed.

The court noted that the investigation failed to prove a key element — intent to obtain financial gain. The fact that the young man did not pay for crossing the sea was not deemed sufficient grounds to qualify the act under the human trafficking statute.

However, the three-year sentence under the migration statute — for illegal operation of a vessel transporting people without permission — remains in effect. The boat was overloaded and the migrants were at risk, but the first-instance court took mitigating factors into account: the defendant’s age, lack of prior convictions, and his personal record.