The Guardian Reports on Acquittals in the Second Ayia Napa Gang Rape Case

On 1 April 2025, the Guardian reported on the acquittal of all 5 defendants in the second Ayia Napa Gang Rape case where Justice Abroad was assisting the complainant: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/apr/01/cyprus-court-acquits-five-israeli-men-accused-of-raping-british-woman

The article quotes Justice Abroad’s director who described the assertion that the young lady in this case consented to group sex with the defendants as absurd. “The young lady in this case is gay, any suggestion that she voluntarily agreed to group sex with men she had never met before, who were speaking in a different language, is ridiculous,” he told the Guardian. “She has been left completely distraught by the court’s verdict today. It was one of the hardest phone calls I have ever had to make.”

The woman, who had travelled to Cyprus on holiday, alleged that she was attacked by multiple men in July 2023 after being invited to a hotel room by one of the accused. Following a lengthy trial, the court acquitted all five defendants.

The decision in this case must be viewed in light of the European Court of Human Rights’ recent judgment in X v Cyprus in a separate but similar matter involving a British woman subjected to a gang rape in Ayia Napa, Republic of Cyprus in 2019, where Justice Abroad also acted for the Applicant. In that case, the ECtHR found that Cypriot authorities had failed to conduct a proper investigation and had violated the woman’s rights under the European Convention on Human Rights. Addressing this, Mr Polak stated “Recently, the European court of human rights ruled that there is no effective protection for women subject to sexual offences in the Republic of Cyprus…Unfortunately, nothing I have seen shows that there have been any improvements in this area.”

The family of the young lady in this case are raising funds to challenge today’s judgment and to seek justice. All donations made at  www.crowdjustice.com/case/help-ayia-napa-rape-case are very much appreciated at this difficult time. 

Justice Abroad is an organisation set up to help those trying to find their way through justice systems overseas with all the associated hurdles that presents, to represent those facing gross breaches of their human rights no matter where this takes place, and to advise and assist the victims of crimes as to how to achieve justice.

Justice Abroad can be contacted by email or telephone (contact@justiceabroad.co.uk; +44 (0)203 488 2316)