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 Reuters in
Nicosia |
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| Forty-two women
aged 60-98 had been summoned to court after police net €100 from raid on
game similar to gin rummy Cypriot authorities say they will drop charges against dozens of older women for gambling after reports of their prosecution triggered disbelief among the public. Some 42 women aged 60 to 98 had received a court summons following a police raid on a private residence where they were playing a local version of gin rummy. Gambling for even the smallest amounts – in the women's case, police retrieved €100 ($130 or £80) in the raid in 2009 – is banned on the island. By contrast, online gambling, an industry with an estimated annual turnover of more than €1bn, is unregulated although lawmakers plan to introduce legislation next month. "I asked for the file on the case and I immediately gave instructions for prosecution to be suspended," Cyprus's attorney general, Petros Clerides, told state television. The women, dubbed "Supergrans" by one newspaper, say their hobby helps keep their minds alert and allows them to socialise. "What would they have expected us to do when we are 96," said Eftychia Yiasemidou. Now 98, the former schoolteacher says she still indulges in her favourite hobby. "I only stopped about 20 days ago, temporarily, because of the cold weather," she told the Politis daily. |
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