‘In 46 years, I’ve never seen anything like this’

The lengthy continued detention of the British father arrested following the death of his three-year-old son in Paphos is unjustified, prominent criminal lawyer Christos Triantafyllides said on Monday.

“In 46 years as a lawyer, I have never seen anything like this,” he said.

The father’s eight-day remand expires on Tuesday, with police confirming they are awaiting the results of toxicology examinations before deciding their next steps.

Police spokesman Vyron Vyronos told the Cyprus Mail that the detention order ends on Tuesday and investigators are still waiting for the laboratory toxicology results.

Triantafyllides said “a major mistake” was being made by the prosecution.

“From the moment this is not a homicide investigation, there are only two possible scenarios, negligence or an accident,” he said.

He argued that none of the legal grounds normally required to justify such a lengthy remand detention applied in this case.

“What could this man possibly do if he were released?” Triantafyllides said.

“People are detained only where there is a risk of absconding, a risk of repeating the offence, or in cases such as murder. None of those reasons applies here.”

The veteran lawyer said the father had already suffered an unimaginable personal tragedy.

“The blow this man has suffered is enormous,” he said.

The 37-year-old father was arrested on suspicion of causing death by a rash or negligent act, as well as failing in his duty as head of a family and as a person responsible for the care of another.

Investigators believe the father was holding his son and playing with him while waiting for the lift when the child slipped through an open section of a sliding window and fell to his death.

Speaking to the Cyprus Mail his lawyer, Petros Stavrou, criticised the decision to keep his client in custody, saying that there was no justification for his continued detention while the investigation was ongoing.

The investigation, including inquiries into the circumstances surrounding the fall, remains ongoing. Whether all relevant safety requirements at the hotel had been met is also being looked into.