Former Kition Bishop given suspended sentence for assault on a minor

Larnaca District Court handed a 12-month suspended sentence to Former Kition bishop Chrysostomos after he was found guilty of assaulting a 16-year-old girl in 1981.

According to in- Cyprus and Kathimerini Cyprus, the decision was met with outcry by protesters who gathered outside the courtroom, chanting “rapist, how many women have you assaulted?” and “filthy rapist.”

The bishop was escorted out surrounded by police officers, as demonstrators tried to attack his car while screaming at him.

The judge said he considered multiple factors when delivering the sentence, such as Chrysostomos’ advanced age (85), his health problems, and the substantial amount of time that has passed since the assault.

Nonetheless, she expressed disappointment over the former bishop’s attitude that was at times “arrogant and sarcastic”.

The plaintiff now aged 58 told reporters she had expected to hear a symbolic sentence – not a suspended one, charging the state had been wholly absent throughout.

( Source in- Cyprus, Kathimerini Cyprus)