Appeals court upholds convictions of neurosurgeon and his wife

On March 31, 2026, the Cyprus Court of Appeal upheld the convictions of a Nicosia General Hospital neurosurgeon and his wife regarding the illegal sale of a medical valve. The doctor had convinced a patient requiring hydrocephalus surgery to pay €1,500 for a valve supplied by his wife's company, falsely claiming it was superior to the free hospital-provided alternative. The payment was delivered to the wife in a parking lot without any receipt issued. The original court likened the transaction to drug trafficking, rejecting the doctor's defense that the valve was a necessary backup. The Appeals Court dismissed claims regarding the violation of a fair trial. However, it partially reduced the doctor’s sentences due to a legal error in calculating the maximum penalty. Specifically, the sentence for abuse of power was reduced from 32 to 18 months, and the sentence for obtaining goods by false pretences was reduced from 28 to 22 months. The convictions for money laundering and other related offenses against the wife and doctor remain in effect.