British teenager has been found guilty of lying about being gang raped by a group of Israeli youths in Cyprus.
The woman, 19, was convicted of a single count of public mischief at Famagusta District Court in the town of Paralimni.
She claimed she was attacked by 12 Israeli teens in an Ayia Napa hotel on July 17 before retracting this in a statement 10 days later.
However she later said in court that she was raped and claimed she was pressured into changing her account by Cypriot police. The police denied this.
Judge Michalis Papathanasiou said in his verdict on Monday morning that the teenager did not tell the truth and tried to deceive the court with “convenient” and “evasive” statements.
“My conclusion is that the guilt of the accused has been proven beyond reasonable doubt,” he said.
He said the defendant told investigators she made up the claims because she felt “ashamed” after finding out some of the Israelis had filmed her having sex on their mobile phones.
He adjourned sentencing to January 7.
The teenager nodded her head slightly as she was found guilty but showed no other emotion.
She could face up to a year in jail and a 1,700 euro (£1,500) but her lawyers have asked for a suspended sentence, saying she was under strong psychological pressure at the time.
But following the verdict, the defendant argued with her lawyers, saying “I thought you were asking for a fine”.
She was mobbed by photographers and camera operators as she left court with her mother.
Both wore white scarves around their faces depicting lips sewn together, brought by protesters from the Network Against Violence Against Women who filled the court and demonstrated outside.
One of the her lawyers, Nicoletta Charalambidou, told reporters that they would be appealing the decision.
“The decision of the court is respected,” she said. “However, we respectfully disagree with it.
“We believe there have been many violations of the procedure and the rights of a fair trial of our client have been violated.
“We are planning to appeal the decision to the Supreme Court, and if justice fails… we are planning to take our case to the European Court of Human Rights.”
After spending more than a month in prison, the defendant was granted bail at the end of August but has not been allowed to leave Cyprus.
She was a week into a working holiday in the summer before she was due to start university when she alleged she was raped.
She previously said in court she was in a hotel room with one of the Israeli youths who she had a relationship with before others appeared and she was pinned down.
One defence witness, Marios Matsakis, a forensic pathologist who formerly worked for the state, said her injuries were consistent with rape.
The 12 Israelis returned home after being released without charge 10 days after their arrest, the same day the teen gave her retracting statement.
