Lignadis to serve 12-year prison sentence for two counts of raping a minor

A Mixed Jury Court on Wednesday sentenced former actor and director Dimitris Lignadis to serve 12 years in prison for two counts of raping 17-year-old boys in 2015. The sentence arises from the merger of a sentence of 10 years and a sentence of five years decided for each offence separately.

The sentence of 12 years, as recommended by the public prosecutor on the bench, was reached by a majority of four votes to three, with one juror, the president on the bench and one of the judges calling for a combined sentence of 11 years in total.

The public prosecutor has asked that the sentence should not be suspended pending appeal as Lignadis is considered liable to commit further crimes and has admitted no responsibility for the acts for which he has been found guilty by the court.
Lignadis will soon have served 17 months in prison on remand.

A final decision on whether the sentence should be suspended, which would allow Lignadis' release until the appeal hearing takes place, is still pending.

AMNA