Woman Who Accused 12 Men of Rape Is Guilty of ‘Public Mischief’ in Cyprus

A British woman was convicted on Monday for lying to the authorities in Cyprus when she accused a dozen Israeli men of raping her before later retracting her statement, the latest twist in a case that divided public opinion in Cyprus and Israel.

The British woman, who was 19 when she made the accusation and has not been publicly identified, was convicted of public mischief. Following the verdict, handed down by Famagusta District Court in Cyprus, she will be sentenced on Jan. 7 in the case, in which she accused the Israeli men of raping her in a hotel room in the resort town of Ayia Napa.

The men, ranging in age from 15 to 18, were arrested in July and then freed later that month after the police said the woman had retracted the accusations. She was then arrested on a charge of “public mischief,” accused of making a false allegation.

The woman could face up to a year in prison but can appeal the verdict, according to the BBC, which reported that her lawyers had asked for a suspended sentence.

The woman pleaded not guilty when her trial began on Oct. 2. But proceedings were paused when a separate hearing began later that month to determine whether the police had forced her to change her original statement and withdraw the rape accusation, as she claimed.

That hearing concluded on Nov. 28 when a judge ruled that her retraction was admissible as evidence in her initial trial, according to a statement last month from Justice Abroad, a legal charity that has assisted her.

The woman spent more than a month in prison after being charged with public mischief, and has not been able to leave Cyprus for more than six months.