THREE men have been arrested after the corpse of the former Cypriot president was found reburied in another grave, in what officials called a body snatch for ransom.
However, two spokesmen for former President Tassos Papadopoulos' family insisted that his relatives had never received a demand for money.
The right-wing Greek Cypriot hard-liner's body was stolen in December during slow-moving reunification talk
s with Turkish Cypriot leaders.
A lack of clear motive and few clues led to speculation that it could have been politically motivated, but authorities suggested early on that ransom was a more likely scenario.
The robbers removed a heavy marble plaque from on top of Mr Papadopoulos' grave on the southern outskirts of the Cypriot capital, Nicosia, then dug down to the coffin and removed the body of the former president on 11 December – a day before the first anniversary of his death.
Lime was strewn over the grave in what investigators believe was an attempt to erase any tracks they might have left behind.
Investigators sought the help of the FBI and Interpol, as well as Greek and Israeli law enforcement authorities.
But there was little progress in the investigation until Monday, when police found the body in another cemetery after being alerted by his family, who had received a telephone tip off.
Family spokesman Chrysis Pantelides said a man speaking broken Greek had called with information about the corpse and instructed them to call police.
DNA testing yesterday confirmed it was Mr Papadopoulos' body, police spokesman Michalis Katsounotos said. The former president's body was found inside another grave and covered with a thin layer of soil, and had been placed in the grave recently.
Mr Katsounotos said the suspects will appear in court today, and police will request their detention.
An official, speaking anonymously because he is not authorised to comment on an ongoing investigation, said the suspects are a Cypriot convict serving a life term at Nicosia's central prison, his brother and a foreign national.
Justice Minister Loucas Louca said Mr Papadopoulos' family had received a demand for ransom, but that no money had been paid. He did not indicate when the demand had been made.
"The conclusion is that ransom was behind the theft and there was no political motive," he said.
But two spokesmen for the family said the family had received no such demand.
"Officials must be very careful when they open their mouths," said Vassilis Palmas, a family friend. "The minister said something that is unfounded."
Mr Louca, however, stood by his statement. "As minister of justice and public order, I'm obliged to tell the truth. All that I stated previously completely reflects the truth and the facts," he said.
Relatives rushed to the cemetery after being notified of the corpse's discovery.
Mr Papadopoulos' widow, Fotini, said: "The discovery of our beloved Tassos' corpse has put an end to the agony that we have been living through the last three months."
Mr Papadopoulos was defeated in a February 2008 presidential poll by Dimitris Christofias. He died of cancer in 2008 aged 74.
