Cyprus trial of Brit accused of making up rape claim starts
Posted October 2, 2019 9:13 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
PARALIMNI, Cyprus — The trial of a 19 year-old British woman accused of making up a claim she was raped by a dozen Israelis in a hotel room in Cyprus has begun with defence lawyers suggesting her alleged assailants had planned to commit the crime.
Defence lawyer Nicoletta Charambidou said Wednesday that some text messages exchanged between the Israeli youth showed them bragging about their plans to have sex with the woman, who hasn’t been named in line with local reporting restrictions.
Justice Abroad Director Michael Polak said investigators failed to provide the defence with all text messages from 11 mobile phones seized that could shed further light.
Cyprus police said the woman retracted her July 17 rape allegations ten days later after investigators found what they said were inconsistencies in her statements.
The Associated Press
