Global General

Stolen remains of former Cyprus president found

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2010-03-09 19:58

NICOSIA - Cyprus police believe they have found the remains of ex-president Tassos Papadopoulos, which were stolen three months ago.

Police spokesman Michalis Katsounotos said on Monday night that the remains which were found in a cemetery near Nicosia may be those of ex-president Tassos Papadopoulos.

Katsounotos added that further DNA examinations will be made to establish beyond any doubt that the remains are those of the ex- president.

The spokesman said the police were led to the cemetery by an anonymous telephone call.

Investigators went to a telephone booth in the Nicosia suburb of Tseri looking for fingerprints and other evidence which may lead to the man who made the call.

A man who is believed to have made the call and some other people suspected to be behind the stealing of the remains are being sought, a police source said.

Policemen dug up a grave at the cemetery a few kilometers from Nicosia and found the remains.

Relatives of Papadopoulos went to the cemetery. His daughter was seen to be in tears when leaving the area some time later.

The police source said there are very strong indications that the remains are those of the ex-president, but refused to go into details.

The remains of Papadopoulos were stolen from another cemetery not far from the one where they were found on Monday night.

The stealing of the remains took place on the night of December 11 last year, one day before the first anniversary of his death. The motives behind the stealing are not yet known.

The culprits had dug up his grave and removed the bones from the casket, carefully covering up the earth with gypsum to cover their tracks.

Papadopoulos served a five-year term as President of Cyprus, from February 2003 to February 2008, when he lost to his former coalition partner Demetris Christofias.

He was considered to be a hardliner on the Cyprus problem, having rejected a United Nations-inspired plan to reunify the island in 2004.

He led a "No" campaign which resulted in 76 percent of Greek Cypriots rejecting the plan.

Cyprus has been divided since 1974 when Turkey militarily intervened and occupied the north of the island following a coup by a group of Greek officers.

Negotiations are now under way between President Christofias and Turkish Cypriot leader Mehmet Ali Talat to reach a peace settlement.