Court orders arrest of arsonist
NICOSIA (AP) – A court in the self-declared Turkish-Cypriot state yesterday ordered the arrest of a man suspected of manslaughter in an arson attack in Britain pending the outcome of his trial, a report said. Kemal Kemalzade, 39, was detained in northern Cyprus last year and charged with manslaughter for his alleged role in a 2000 explosion at a newsagent’s owned by his brother and his wife in Stoke-on-Trent, Britain. The blast killed their tenant, Colin Salt, who lived above the shop. Kemalzade’s brother and sister-in-law, Cinar and Sibel Kemalzade, were jailed in 2004 in Britain for manslaughter and plotting to blow up their shop to claim insurance money. Kemal Kemalzade, who fled to northern Cyprus in 2001, had been free on bail, but the court on Thursday ordered his arrest pending the outcome of the trial, the Turkish-Cypriot TAK news agency reported. The court also heard from Turkish-Cypriot deputy police inspector Eniz Aytan, who has been investigating the case and traveled to Britain several times to gather evidence. The trial was adjourned until October 2, TAK reported. Britain has no agreement for the extradition of wanted criminals with northern Cyprus, which is not recognized internationally. Turkish-Cypriot officials recently began trying internationally wanted criminals to prevent their breakaway state from being seen as a haven for fugitives. Cyprus has been divided into a Turkish-dominated north and Greek-led south since 1974, when Turkey sent troops to the island following a short-lived coup staged by supporters of the union with Greece. Only Turkey recognizes the Turkish-Cypriot state.
