Cyprus-Forum.com

[Bill]

Reported on the front page of the Cyprus mail the other day .

But strangely not seen on the local Greek news

Brutal beating in Paralimni
By Jean Christou

A BRITISH property buyer was hospitalised for two days on Monday after allegedly being badly beaten by the developers with whom he is in dispute, his lawyer said yesterday.

Conor O’Dwyer, 38, who has widely publicised his case on youtube and on the website lyingbuilder.com, was kicked in the kidneys and had his head stomped on, according to his lawyer Yiannos Georgiades.

O’Dwyer had already pressed charges over another alleged beating by the father and son developers in March 2006 while fighting his ongoing property case at court. They were later charged over the assault.

According to Georgiades, on Monday at around 11am O’Dwyer went to the disputed property in the Famagusta district to take pictures of changes to the area around the house to produce as evidence in the land wrangle.

“He thought the photos might prove important later,” said Georgiades.

Upon his arrival, the woman to whom the developers re-sold the house after unilaterally cancelling O’Dwyer’s contract and keeping £75,000 of his money, allegedly “made a phone call” and two men appeared shortly afterwards that O’Dwyer identified as the developers.

“Conor was forced out of his car. One stepped on his head and the other kicked him in the kidneys,” said Georgiades, adding that they also took his camera.

“He was bleeding and there was a crowd of mostly women screaming and shouting for them to stop. He was crying out for help and no one helped him.”

Georgiades said someone eventually called 112 and police showed up with an ambulance. A British woman also took pictures of what was going on, he said.

O’Dwyer was taken to Paralimni hospital and from there sent to Larnaca.

“He has head injuries, external bruising, internal pain in the kidney region and he is badly shaken,” said Georgiades.

Doctors decided to keep him in until today to run tests and X-rays.

Georgiades said he had spoken to police about the incident. “They said they were investigating the ‘accident’,” said Georgiades. “I told them it wasn’t an accident. They didn’t arrest anyone but they did take statements.”

Georgiades said he spoke yesterday with a senior officer at Famagusta CID who said they were dealing with the case. O’Dwyer gave a statement to police yesterday afternoon from his hospital bed.

The senior officer dealing with the case, George Economou, told the Cyprus Mail yesterday police would take statements from all concerned and decide if there was a case to press charges.

“Conor is just giving his statement now,” said Economou. Asked if there would be any arrests, he said he would know more today. “It depends on the investigation,” he said.

Georgiades said he has also informed the British High Commission.

With regard to the previous assault case against the developers, Georgiades said the charges had been dropped by the Attorney-general ostensibly because O’Dwyer had not shown up for a hearing.

But the lawyer said when the last hearing was due, O’Dwyer, who lives in the UK, had been told by prosecutors not to bother coming to Cyprus because the hearing would likely be adjourned.

“He didn’t come and on the day of the court case, the prosecutor said the judge wouldn’t give an adjournment so the proceedings against the two men would be stayed”.

O’Dwyer is now entering the third year of his property saga.

He and his wife were going to buy a house on a development in Frenaros village. However when they viewed the construction area when the project was coming along, they realised the surrounding homes were not those specified in the original plan.

This would have resulted in a total lack of privacy as two balconies on other properties would have been looking into their garden. O’Dwyer has said the reason they had chosen the site in the first place was for the privacy that was promised.

After several run-ins with the developers over the changes to the surrounding area, and although the house is registered to them at the Land Registry given they had paid for most of it, the O’Dwyers subsequently discovered that the developers had sold it to another British family, who now reside there. The O’Dwyers have not received their money back.

When O’Dwyer launched his story on youtube video, backed up by documents and taped conversations with the developers and their lawyers, Interior Minister Christos Patsalides ordered an investigation in August last year, but no results have been forthcoming.

Copyright © Cyprus Mail 2007

Comments please

Bill ~~

[IcyNoAngel]

Damn. These people should go to prison, maybe the coldness there will change them a little bit.

[pantheman]

Totally discraceful, I have already made my comments elsewhere.

I think that there should be a Developers federation to deal with such rogue people. Its not good for anyone, least of all the cypriot people.

Its sickening. I hope they get caught and dealt with PROPERLY !

[123456]

According to an "unknown" caller to the Cyprus Mail (maybe read someone connected to the assailants) it was simply an argument over a traffic accident. They claim the two cars collided!

What that might have to do with excusing the fact that the poor sod was dragged out of his car and set upon by, quelle surprise, two assailants (does the idea of a fair fight not exist over here?) I have no idea.

It was also mentioned that they ripped a video camera off him and were, allegedly, seen holding it whilst being questioned at the scene by the police. This camera, again allegedly, may well hold (or at least held) proof of the facts of the case. Unfortunately no police officer felt compelled to enquire about whether there might be anything of interest on the camera.

Might I suggest that anybody who feels compelled to, visit the victim's website at lyingbuilder.com and drop him an email of support. A small gesture such as this might just help this poor family feel less alone in their plight.

[Raymanoff]

local police is a disgrace... when i was 16, i took a taxi from a friend's apartment to Aya Napa center. When i arrived, taxi driver told me to pay a different amount which was shown on a meter... i refused and got out of the car. He called his fellow macho patchogero taxitzies nearby and they started pushing me around calling me "Pushtorosso"... until some people intervened. I went to police but they told me to go to doctor otherwise i was wasting my time...

I love this country but at the same time so many people are totally fucked up here...

[halil]

If i comment it will be ....................... !!!!!!

[RebelWithoutAPause]

If i comment it will be ....................... !!!!!!

Have you heard of the story of the boy who cryed wolf?...or grey wolf on your case?

[denizaksulu]

If i comment it will be ....................... !!!!!!

Halil, hodiri meydan. Neyin varsa soyle. (speak up)

Even in silence they will try to shut you up.

[123456]

Would it be possible to try, just for once, to keep this tired old communal feuding out of a thread?

It's six of one and half a dozen of the other anyway and, as far as this topic is concerned, irrelevant.

[tessintrnc]

Its very bad, Cyprus communities are very close knit, which is lovely and a thing to be envied most of the time, but unfortunately it also enables bad people to get away with this sort of thing because a lot of them know someone who is a position of authority and who can turn a blind eye. Those men should be in custody NOW and remanded until trial. Maybe serious cases etc should be turned over to a police force OUTSIDE the district where the accused aren't so well known.
Tess