President expected to pardon grandfather who shot cable thief

President Nikos Christodoulides on Thursday is set to grant a pardon to the 82-year-old grandfather who was jailed the previous day for shooting an attempted thief.

The man had been sentenced to two and a half years behind bars on Wednesday after having been convicted of intending to cause serious bodily harm and carrying and using a firearm when he shot a man who was attempting to steal electricity cables from his house in the back.

The man’s relatives burst into tears when the sentence was read out, as they had hoped that he may have received a suspended sentence for his crime. However, the court concluded that a suspended sentence “would not be justified.”

The court said it had taken into account various mitigating factors but concluded that a more lenient sentence than the two and a half years handed down would “send the wrong message to would-be offenders” and “would not serve the needs of the law”.

However, with Christodoulides now ordering a pardon, he will be freed once the relevant legal procedures have been carried out.

The shooting had taken place in the Limassol village of Alassa last June. The 82-year-old exited his house during a power outage to check the main supply panel and took a hunting rifle and a cartridge with him for protection.

He then realised that someone else was on his property and winding an electric wire. He then approached the perpetrator and shouted at him, before firing a shot, which hit him in the back.