Cyprus court sentences Ukrainian woman to 20 months for false declarations when bringing in €7.8 million

The Permanent Criminal Court of Larnaca has sentenced a 32-year-old Ukrainian woman to 20 months in prison. She was found guilty on 20 counts of providing customs authorities with false information when bringing cash into Cyprus. Money laundering charges, which carried a possible sentence of up to 14 years in prison, were dropped in January due to a lack of evidence that the funds were of criminal origin.

Key facts of the case:
- From August 2023 to March 2024, the woman flew to Cyprus about 20 times and brought in a total of €7,769,300 in cash.
- The investigation began in March 2024 after the woman told police that €420,000 had been stolen from her in Limassol.
- A 43-year-old man was also involved in the case; he was linked to receiving part of the money, but the money laundering charges against him were also dropped.

Why such a sentence was imposed:
Cypriot law requires mandatory declaration of amounts over €10,000. Providing false information to customs is a separate offence and is punishable regardless of whether money laundering is proven. When imposing the 20-month sentence, the court took mitigating circumstances into account, including the fact that the convicted woman has two minor children.