The suspect alleged of murdering 26-year-old Alexandros Antoniou  in the Paphos district village of Konia in November will appear before Paphos criminal court on Thursday.

The 58-year-old, who remained in custody at the central prison in Nicosia as was, will be transferred to Paphos for the continuation of his trial at 9am.

The Paphos district court had ordered the defendant to remain in custody until the commencement of his trial, citing the possibility of his non-appearance.

An argument between the two men outside a kiosk in Konia on November 19 allegedly escalated when the 58-year-old pulled out a knife and stabbed the victim multiple times before fleeing the scene.

The victim was then taken to the Paphos general hospital, where he died three days later.

The suspect was initially apprehended on the day of the murder and re-arrested on murder charges after the victim’s death.

On his arrest, the 58-year-old told the police that he had been emotionally charged during the incident, as Antoniou had previously been in a relationship with the suspect’s daughter during which problems arose.

Prosecution lawyer Sotiroula Papalazarou said that the police also have testimony that the suspect and the victim were at one point engaged in an argument, and that the victim asked “what do you want? What did I do?”, and the suspect responded, “did you hear what I told you? Leave her alone”.

Defence lawyer Elias Stefanou had in an earlier hearing argued that the suspect’s intention was “not to strike a vital part of the 26-year-old’s body”.