Pafos Live 31 October 2024
Two youths, aged 15 and 16, were arrested by police in Paphos for conspiracy to commit a felony, theft and stabbing.
According to Paphos Assistant Police Director of Operations, Michalis Nicolaou, the Police received information on Wednesday at 17:10 about suspicious individuals in a store of Kings Avenue Mall.
The two minors, of Arab origin, were found to have stolen clothing and were in possession of a knife. They were arrested and released after questioning, while the case will be examined by the Legal Service for possible criminal prosecution.
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Filenews
A 30-year-old man has been arrested for facilitating police investigations into an ongoing case of theft of property from a mosque in Larnaca.
According to information, around 14:30 on Wednesday, October 30, information was received from the head of a mosque in Larnaka, that a 30-year-old foreign man who spoke Arabic, entered the mosque area, made a fuss and stole property.
Members of the Larnaka Minor Offences Department went to the area where they located the mosque's Hoxha, who said that in the last month the 30-year-old has been going to the mosque during prayers and often stealing various items belonging to the mosque.
An arrest warrant was issued against the 30-year-old and he was being sought. Around 11 last night he was located and arrested by members of the Larnaka Police Headquarters.
The suspect is Syrian, holder of a subsidiary protection residence permit and is expected to appear before the Larnaca District Court today in relation to the cases being investigated against him.
The case is being investigated by the Larnaca Minor Offences Department.
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The Limassol YKAN arrested three suspects yesterday, in the context of the case of 9 kilos of drugs that were found and seized in early August in an apartment in Limassol. In relation to the case, two people had already been arrested, who were under trial in the Central Prison awaiting trial before the Assize Court.
As Philenews learns, the YKAN proceeded with the new arrests after the report of the Cyprus Institute of Neurology and Genetics, which linked the suspects to genetic material (DNA) found in different evidence of the case.
The three new suspects were questioned at the YKAN offices and, after receiving legal advice, reserved their right not to make statements. Another person, a relative of one of the three suspects, is also wanted in the case, but has not been identified so far.
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As part of an investigation into a case of assault and robbery against a food distributor in Limassol last Thursday, police arrested two more people yesterday.
These are men aged 20 and 25 who were arrested on court warrants and detained.
The ICF Limassol continues the examinations.
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An operation was carried out today at dawn by the Aliens and Immigration Service (YAM) in the Limassol district, with the aim of locating and arresting foreigners residing illegally in the territory of the Republic of Cyprus.
The operation took place in the community of Pachna, following information that reached the hands of the authorities, about illegal stay of foreigners.
The YAM carried out coordinated raids in specific places of residence and work, where it proceeded to arrest 10 people. According to authorities, these individuals did not have the necessary documents and most of them had been on the island illegally for several months.
The operation was carried out with the participation of several police forces and the Limassol Police Department.
Those arrested are expected to give evidence, then the necessary procedures for their deportation will be initiated.
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The Nicosia Crime Detection Department made a total of 14 arrests yesterday morning in the context of two organized operations that are part of the fight against organized crime.
ICF men with the assistance of members of the Crime Prevention Unit and the Police Dog Branch searched six premises at first light of day and proceeded to arrest three persons, two Syrians and one person of Turkish Cypriot origin.
Two pepper sprays (offensive instruments according to the law) were found in the possession of the first arrestee, while it was found that a prison warrant of €1,440 was pending against him.
The second detainee, also from Syria, had a prison warrant for the sum of €1,722.
As far as the Turkish Cypriot is concerned, according to the police, he was arrested for possession of prohibited medicines and a quantity of tobacco products.
Subsequently, an operation was carried out at the racecourse and after inspection and investigations, 11 persons were arrested for offences related to uncollected fine warrants.
The nine, after paying a total amount of €6,740, were released. The other two arrestees, who owed €22,000 and €10,500, were detained pending the settlement of the relevant fine warrants.
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An Iranian man arrested in 2023 in Cyprus for his alleged involvement in the activities of Iranian terrorist elements allegedly acting with the aim of killing Israeli nationals will continue to be detained for deportation.
The 52-year-old Iranian, who has been detained for more than 11 months, applied to the Supreme Court for a writ of habeas corpus ordering his release.
The Court, after examining all the facts, and in particular because of the situation in the Middle East and his wish to be deported to Israel, considered that the duration of his detention had not exceeded the reasonable time limits to justify the approval of his application, which is why it rejected it.
The Iranian came to Cyprus on 2.1.2002 together with his wife and their child, with an entry visa issued to them at Larnaka airport. The Asylum Service granted him refugee status, otherwise the status of beneficiary of international protection.
On 4.11.2023, the applicant was arrested pursuant to a relevant warrant for the purpose of investigating against him a case of involvement in the activities of Iranian terrorist elements allegedly acting with the aim of killing Israeli nationals. However, it was considered that in the end it would not be beneficial to prosecute him in relation to the above action attributed to him. On 19.11.2023, however, deportation and detention orders were issued against him.
He filed an appeal with the Administrative Court on 15.12.2023 against the legality of the aforementioned decrees, which was rejected. As stated in the Court's decision, the applicant's case was subject to review by the competent state agency. In this context, he was interviewed at regular intervals. His own statements, taken into account with other information that has come to the knowledge of the Police from authoritative sources, as mentioned in secret documents submitted to the Court, confirmed the position of the competent service that he should remain in detention until he is deported. In fact, he is allegedly associated with a terrorist organization acting for the aforementioned purpose.
As the Supreme Court adds in its judgment, in the context of the interviews to which he had been subjected, he was repeatedly asked to comment on the country to which he wished to be deported. He was given several options.
The applicant repeatedly stated that he prefers to go to Israel. Given the above wish of the applicant, it is stated by the Republic that the procedure for issuing to him a Cypriot biometric passport for deportation with escort will proceed. Due to the unstable situation in the Middle East, flights and airline seats are limited.
Under all the circumstances, the Court concludes, including the fact that the applicant remained in detention for a period of more than two months of his own volition, it is considered that the duration of his detention has not exceeded the reasonable time limits to justify the approval of his application.
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The Larnaca District Court on Thursday afternoon imposed an immediate sentence of 2 years in prison on two unaccompanied minors, 17 years old, from Syria, who were found guilty of arson at the Henipa Hotel, which operated as a facility managed by SWS until last summer.
The defendants faced three charges, two of arson and one count of conspiracy to commit a felony. The first 17-year-old was found guilty of the first arson at the hotel, in which mattresses were burned. The second defendant was found guilty of conspiracy to commit a felony and the first arson, while he was acquitted by the second, who had caused very serious damage to the hotel.
The two juveniles were found guilty after a closed-door hearing. It is noted that a third minor was acquitted and acquitted of the charges he faced in a previous trial.
The offences in question were committed in the early hours of June 5 at the Henipa Hotel in Oroklini, which operated as a facility hosting about 70 unaccompanied minors. Initially, a mattress fire had broken out which was extinguished, and then a second fire was detected that caused extensive damage on the second floor of the hotel, as well as in common areas on the third floor. It is recalled that after this incident it was decided to close the facility and the minors were transferred to others throughout Cyprus
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in-cyprus
The Supreme Court of Cyprus has rejected an appeal from a woman seeking to overturn a search warrant issued for her premises on 18 September 2024, in what has become an unusual case involving allegations of black magic and witchcraft.
The defendant, who claims to be a follower of the Mexican “Santa Muerte” (Holy Death) deity, challenged the legality of a police search of her storage facility in Kakopetria, where authorities discovered various items including human skulls, bones, dragons, onions, and garlic.
Evidence presented to the court included a live video posted by the accused, where she allegedly offered paid services to make men fall in love through magic. Police found numerous items during their search, including:
- Fox bones and snake remains
- Tarot cards and coins
- Glass skulls with snakes
- Bags containing hair with people’s names
- Ram skulls with horns
- Witch’s hat and black cape
- Money in a skull-shaped cup
- Various ritual items including black and red candles
While the defendant argued that the items were part of her religious practice and protected under Article 18 of the Cyprus Constitution guaranteeing freedom of religion, the court found sufficient evidence to uphold the search warrant’s validity.
Judge D. Ioannides noted that while religious freedom is protected, the case centres on allegations of paid services for magic practices. A police informant claimed the defendant had requested payment to help establish a romantic relationship with a younger man, followed by threats when payment was refused.
The court dismissed claims that the absence of actual payment undermined the case, noting that receiving payment would have constituted additional fraud charges.
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