Pafos Live 16 November 2024
The Pafos District Court issued a three-day detention order against a 25-year-old man on Friday to facilitate investigations into an ongoing case of illegal possession of drugs and property and traffic offences.
According to an announcement by the Office of the Communication Branch of the Police Headquarters, the arrest of a 25-year-old man, to facilitate investigations into an investigated case of illegal possession of drugs and illegal possession of property, proceeded last night.
The arrest of the 25-year-old was eventful after a chase of his vehicle on the streets of Paphos.
Specifically, around 9 p.m. Yesterday, members of the Police spotted a car parked on a Paphos road, in which two persons were located. As soon as the driver of the vehicle noticed the policemen, he started his vehicle and developing speed tried to flee. In this attempt, the suspect's vehicle collided with two police vehicles.
A chase of the suspect vehicle followed on the streets of Paphos, with its driver committing a series of traffic offences. The vehicle came to a standstill after colliding with a parked car and police officers intercepted the two occupants.
It was found that the driver is a 25-year-old man and a 20-year-old co-driver, both residents of Paphos. A search conducted inside the vehicle found and seized a quantity of cannabis, with a gross weight of approximately 3 grams, a handmade cigarette with cannabis, a precision scale and the amount of €4,630. As a result, the 25-year-old and 20-year-old were arrested for flagrant offences.
Under questioning, the 25-year-old reportedly said the above belonged to him and was detained to facilitate interrogations. He also underwent a positive narcotest. As for the 20-year-old, the examinations that followed, did not reveal anything incriminating against him and he was released.
It is noted that during the chase, the members of the Police used their service weapons, firing three shots at the tires of the vehicle, in order to immobilize it.
The YKAN (Paphos District Unit) and the Paphos Traffic Police are investigating the case.
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Filenews
Two new cases of online fraud and extortion of funds, amounting to €225,000 in total, are being investigated by the Police. The two cases were reported today to the ICF of Limassol.
According to a complaint filed by a 53-year-old man last July, he spotted an online advertisement for a website featuring investment programs in cryptocurrencies and gold, supposedly with high returns on monetary gain. After the 53-year-old registered on the website, through an electronic link sent to him through messages by the perpetrators of the fraud, between August and October, he proceeded to a number of bank transfers, amounting to a total amount of €125,562, to two bank accounts, to a bank in a foreign country, as indicated by the perpetrators.
The 53-year-old suspected he had been deceived by not receiving any profits, while the attackers demanded that he pay more money to pay taxes than his alleged investments and profits.
The second case concerns a complaint submitted to the ICF Limassol by a 65-year-old man. According to the 65-year-old, last March, he received an email from an unknown person, who claimed to be communicating with him in relation to a supposedly distant relative of the 65-year-old, who is a permanent resident of a foreign country.
Under false pretexts, her assailants claimed to the 65-year-old that he would receive a large amount of money and between March and November, persuaded him to send them various sums of money amounting to about €100,000 for payment of various expenses.
The Police, in response to both of these new fraud allegations, urge caution to the public in relation to making any investments and transactions online.
It is recommended to the public to cooperate only with recognized companies and approved advisors, for any financial investments and to avoid sending large amounts of money to unknown persons.
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New revealing information obtained by "F" sheds further light on the terrorism case that the Cyprus Police has been examining since last October and was brought before the Nicosia District Court yesterday.
It is now clear that the prosecuting authorities believe that they are facing a terrorist financing ring, with the case centered on Idlib, Syria. In fact, a large sum of €712,000 was put in the frame, allegedly managed by the circuit over a period of five months. The case includes the names of Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham (formerly Al-Nusra Front) and Hezbollah, although the two groups have a history of fighting in Syria.
On Thursday, the procedure for referring the case to the Permanent Assize Court of Nicosia took place, with the first hearing set for February 7 next. Through the process, the picture of the defendants and the charges they face became clearer.
As "F" had revealed last Thursday, the evidence that emerged indicated that the position of a couple living in Limassol who allegedly trafficked large amounts of money and that the woman's brother was actively involved.
This was confirmed the day before yesterday, as of the six people who were detained (eight initially), three were released and only the three persons mentioned above were charged. They are the 44-year-old, his 36-year-old wife and the latter's 36-year-old brother.
At the request of the prosecution, the two men will be detained, while the 36-year-old woman was released under restrictive conditions. Her action, of course, according to the evidence that the Police has collected in previous proceedings, suggests her active participation in the case.
The indictment
The indictment, we are told, includes a double-digit number of charges that are common to all suspects. Specifically, they face charges of conspiracy to commit a felony, membership of a terrorist organization, providing support to a terrorist group and money laundering. Police believe the offences were committed between May 2024 and October 2024.
It is clear from what we reported in October, that the 44-year-old is alleged to be the mastermind of a ring and the cashier of Hayat Tahrir Al Sham in Cyprus. The first defendant allegedly had contacts with Turks and through the occupied territories sent money to Idlib, Syria using the Hawala method widespread in Arab countries. This is a way of transferring money that leaves no traces in the banking system.
Warring organizations
Based on the accusations, the three individuals financed not only Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS) but also Hezbollah, which raises questions. HTS, formerly Al-Nusra and an offshoot of al-Qaeda, based in Idlib, Syria, is extreme, allegedly secretly supported by the government of Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan, and most importantly, is against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. Instead, Hezbollah is on his side. Indeed, there is a history of conflict between the two organizations.
However, as we noted in an earlier report at the end of October, information that was put before the police and intelligence services of the Republic, shows that the 44-year-old recently had contacts with a person with whom he works and in turn has contact with Hezbollah. The person in question told authorities he feared for his life. He explained that a member of the Lebanese group had given him a large sum of money for a job and then asked him to return half the money.
International warrants
What is certain is that the investigative work will have been enriched by February without excluding the possibility of changing the indictment. We remind you that, as we revealed last Thursday, the investigators of the case are in two-way contacts with Europol for evidence that emerged during their investigative work. We explained that Cyprus Police officers are in contact with Europol, seeking to obtain more information. Initially, the European Police, at the request of the Anti-Terrorism Office, had received evidence showing that the six detained suspects from 2019 until today had transactions of large amounts through the banking sector. In addition, since last week, investigators from the ICF Headquarters (part of the Crime Fighting Department) have launched a procedure to implement investigation orders in European Union countries, but also to send requests for legal assistance to third countries, i.e. those that are not member states.
Clashes between Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham and Hezbollah
Analyses of people who follow international developments and are published clearly indicate that relations between Hezbollah and Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), the evolution of the Al-Nusra Front (al-Qaeda's affiliate in Syria), remain deeply hostile due to ideological, political and strategic differences, as well as their conflicting alliances in the Syrian war.
Hezbollah is a Lebanon-based Shiite armed group and political party closely linked to Iran. In Syria, it supports the government of Bashar al-Assad, which is predominantly Alawite (an offshoot of Shiism) and a key ally of Iran in the region.
On the other hand, HTS is a Sunni jihadist group, based on an extreme version of Islam and aims to overthrow the Assad regime and establish a Sunni state in Syria. As far as its action in our neighbouring Syria is concerned, it opposes the Assad government, but also its allies, including Hezbollah.
Hezbollah and HTS have clashed repeatedly in Syria, especially near the border with Lebanon (Qalamoun region) and northwestern Syria (Idlib). Indeed, these clashes have been particularly intense in areas such as Aleppo and Idlib, where HTS dominates rebel-held areas.
HTS considers Hezbollah a "heretic" because of its Shiite beliefs and support for Assad. Hezbollah sees HTS as part of the broader Sunni jihadist threat backed by countries such as Saudi Arabia and Qatar.
Hezbollah is backed by Iran, which provides funding, weapons and political cover. HTS has received indirect support in the past from regional powers hostile to Iran and Hezbollah. Clashes between the two have diminished in intensity since HTS's consolidation of dominance in Idlib and the Assad regime's recapture of much of Syria with the help of Hezbollah. However, hostility remains strong, and the two organizations continue to see each other as an existential threat.
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The Department of Customs and Excise seized three cans of heated cigarettes and more than 2.5 kilos of roll-your-own tobacco at the Ayios Dometios barricade yesterday. The offender was asked to pay a total of €5,000.
According to an announcement by the Department of Customs, during checks in the morning hours today at the Ayios Dometios barricade, officers of the Department of Customs and Excise intercepted a vehicle driven by a Turkish Cypriot.
When checking his vehicle, it added, it was found that in a personal food bag and under the rear seats there were hidden quantities of tobacco products.
Specifically, according to the announcement, "3 boxes of heated cigarettes and 2 kilos and 675 grams of roll-your-own tobacco were found and confiscated, which did not bear the label for the harmful smoking in Greek and Turkish, nor the security feature and the unique traceability code, indications that they were duty-free."
Also, it is noted, a personal notebook of the driver with marked individual orders of tobacco products as well as receipts of purchase from the occupied areas of the Republic of Cyprus was confiscated
"The driver was arrested for flagrant offences and the vehicle was confiscated as a means of transporting tobacco products. Later, he was released, after paying €4,500 for the out-of-court settlement of the offences committed and his vehicle was released with the payment of a €500 fee.
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Cyprus Police
Members of the Special Motorcyclist Association yesterday and in the morning hours today, conducted traffic controls as part of the actions to deal with traffic violations, the reduction of serious and fatal road collisions as well as the suppression of nuisance. During the checks, more than 90 complaints were made for various traffic offences, including using a mobile phone while driving, not wearing a protective helmet and seat belt, driving under the influence of alcohol and driving motor vehicles without the necessary documents. During the traffic checks, the members of the Police confiscated two motorcycles, as well as a car, after a breathalyzer test conducted on the 35-year-old driver, the reading was 118μg instead of 22μg, which is the maximum legal limit.
Police campaigns, which are part of efforts to reduce fatal and serious road collisions, continue on a daily basis.
