Pafos Live 11 February 2025
The Pafos district court today issued two days of detention orders against the two youths arrested for the fight after the end of the Poseidon Anarita match.
The president of the club Poseidon Mr. Alkiviadis clarified that no player of the club of Giolou was involved in the incident.
The two arrestees, who hail from Yiolou and Simou, were watching the match and the incident was recorded as the players of the away team left the stadium.
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A total of 9,363 traffic violations were detected and reported during traffic checks carried out by members of the Police, throughout Cyprus, from 03/02/2025 until 09/02/2025.
The members of the Police, in the context of traffic police checks carried out throughout Cyprus, proceeded to 4,720 complaints concerning exceeding the speed limit, 138 complaints for failure to use seat belts by drivers and passengers, 7 complaints for not wearing a protective helmet and 209 complaints for using a mobile phone while driving. There were also 52 complaints for driving under the influence of alcohol, 60 complaints for illegal parking, 23 for parking in disabled areas and 4,154 complaints for committing other traffic offences.
In addition, traffic police checks revealed 32 complaints about drug tests, 63 car seizures and 7 seizures of two-wheeled vehicles.
Traffic checks continue daily, with the aim of preventing fatal and serious road collisions, but also consolidating proper road consciousness by all road users.
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Filenews
The hearing in the trial of Ayia Napa Mayor Christos Zannettou, who faces a heavy indictment in connection with a case of securing a €765,000 European grant for the upgrade of his hotel nearly 15 years ago, did not begin today.
During today's proceedings before the Famagusta Permanent Assize Court, the defendant's defense lawyer, Elias Stefanou, said that they sent a request to the Prosecution to receive witness material considered essential to the case, but this has not been delivered. The prosecution's spokeswoman said she had recently been informed of the request and would respond. So the case was adjourned and set for June 10 at 9 a.m.
It is recalled that the defendants in the case are the Mayor of Ayia Napa himself, since at the time in question he was a shareholder and manager of the hotel, as well as the company L. IOANNOU & Z. Pieris Limited, as a legal entity. Mr Zannettou was charged on 12 July 2024 with forgery, circulation of a forged document, extortion of money by false representations, false reports by company officials and money laundering. The latter charge carries up to 14 years in prison. The mayor of Ayia Napa had replied that he had not pleaded guilty and had been released on parole.
More specifically, the mayor of Ayia Napa is accused of falsifying the hotel financial statements for the year 2007, which were submitted in 2009 to the CTO in order to secure €765,486. The issue was first brought to light by the Audit Office, when it was headed by Odysseas Michaelides. In a special report for the CTO in 2019, EY had stated that amounts included in the balance sheet of the company's financial statements for the year 2007 and relate to borrowing "are presented with smaller amounts, which indicates that the submitted as audited financial statements were falsified".
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The proceedings before the Larnaca Permanent Assize Court for the high-profile case of the escape of the 47-year-old Swedish wanted man, for which himself, his 54-year-old lawyer and a 44-year-old police officer are the defendants, began with a postponement.
The procedure was set today to answer whether or not the defendants plead guilty to the 9 charges they face. The Swede's defense lawyer, Antonis Vafeas, asked the court for time to consider the new indictment against his client. The 47-year-old faces charges of conspiracy to commit a felony and escape from lawful custody, while the one related to money laundering was removed.
The 54-year-old lawyer faces charges of conspiracy to commit a felony, assisting an inmate and money laundering. The officer faces charges of conspiracy to commit a felony, assisting a detainee, abuse of office and transactions suggesting corruption.
The court set the case for February 27. The 47-year-old Swede will remain in custody. It is noted that with yesterday's decision the Court of Appeal overturned the first instance decision and released, conditionally, the lawyer and the police officer, whose defense lawyer is Kypros Andreou.
It is recalled that the Swede escaped from a clinic in Larnaca on December 22 last year and was arrested the next day in an apartment building under construction.
The 44-year-old police officer is alleged to be the person who put him in touch with the lawyer and bought the mobile cards handed over to the detainee as well as the shoes he wore during the escape. As for the lawyer, she is alleged to be the person who handed the Swede a mobile phone, chargers, sneakers, a handcuff key, and a map with a meeting point after the escape.
The issue, meanwhile, continues to generate a lot of interest in Sweden and the proceedings were watched today by journalists from the country, after the 49-year-old was wanted for a major financial fraud amounting to €90 million.
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In adventures found a police officer, serving in a specific department of the Police, who was the target of theft by a 36-year-old man, who stole his purse with his service pistol. The theft occurred on Sunday morning (9/2), putting the Police in immediate mobilization. The 36-year-old allegedly stole the officer's purse, which was inside his car, and when he realized it contained a pistol along with two magazines, he tried to get rid of it, throwing it in a park.
According to Filenews, the incident happened on Sunday morning when the police officer parked his vehicle in the area of Agios Athanasios and then went to premises. After 30 minutes, the officer returned to the vehicle where he found that the glass of the passenger door had shattered and there was clutter inside the car.
He quickly realized that his purse in which he kept his service pistol, two loaded magazines, handcuffs and other personal belongings had been stolen. The purse, according to the same information, was placed under the seat and was not visible.
The Police were immediately notified, members of which went to the scene for on-site investigations. After evaluating information, it was determined that the person who stole the purse was the suspect, who as soon as he became aware of the pistol, threw the bag with the gun into a bush, inside a park, near the site of the theft. Eventually, the bag was located with all its contents.
The investigators of the ICF Limassol proceeded in the afternoon of the same day to arrest the 36-year-old, who, questioned in writing, denied involvement in the case. Today, he was brought before the Limassol Court, which ordered his detention for three days. He is being investigated for the offences of illegal possession and transport of a category B5 firearm and ammunition, theft from a car and malicious damage.
In addition to the criminal proceedings against the 36-year-old, an internal investigation will be carried out by the Police to determine whether there was any negligence on the part of the police officer in the safe custody of his service weapon.
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The Permanent Assize Court of Limassol imposed yesterday a 7-year prison sentence on the 45-year-old defendant, in relation to a case of cannabis weighing approximately 3 kg, which was found in a suitcase on November 30, 2021 after a vehicle chase. A 37-year-old man was also sentenced in 2022 to seven years in prison for the same case.
The 45-year-old was found guilty after pleading guilty to the offences of conspiracy, unlawful possession of drugs and unlawful possession with intent to supply to other persons. The Limassol Assize Court imposed a seven-year prison sentence on the most serious charge, that of possession of drugs with intent to supply. It should be noted that from the day the offences were committed, the accused was wanted for 3 years with a European and international arrest warrant and was located in February 2024 at the Ayios Dometios barricade.
The accused is a person who has a previous conviction for the offence of staying in the Republic without permission, as well as other offences of different types. He was sentenced on 29/3/2018 to four years in prison, he was released a few months before the chase and the receipt of the disputed quantity of drugs.
According to the facts of the case, the members of YKAN Limassol received information that specific persons had received in the previous days a quantity of cannabis, which they were going to supply to the market. The members of the YKAN placed under discreet surveillance for two days the 45-year-old, who was moving suspiciously in the area of Polemidia. On November 30, the 45-year-old boarded the 37-year-old defendant's vehicle and together they went to the area of the Spyros Sports Center Kyprianou. At some point, the vehicle stopped in a field. The 45-year-old passenger got out of it and then returned carrying a bag.
The members of the YKAN intercepted the vehicle on Yiannou Kranidioti Avenue, with the 45-year-old passenger exiting the vehicle and fleeing on foot. The 37-year-old, who was the driver, remained in the car and reversed speed and hit the service vehicle of the YKAN. He then threw the bag out of the vehicle and fled on foot. The bag was opened and drug packages were scattered on the street. From the tests that followed, it was found that the bag contained four nylon packages with cannabis weighing about 3kg.
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On Sunday at around 11:00 pm, members of the Limassol OPE were conducting a motorized patrol on Synergismou Street in Polemidia. During the patrol, they stopped for inspection a vehicle driven by a 45-year-old man, with a 39-year-old man as a passenger.
The ensuing search of the vehicle identified a number of tools, for which the occupants did not provide adequate explanations. Therefore, they were arrested for the offence of illegal possession of property.
After further examination, it was found that the tools were products of warehouse burglary and theft, with a total value of €2,000. The stolen goods belong to the Turkish Cypriot Property Management Service.
The ICF Limassol continues its investigations.
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Police arrested six more people aged between 27 and 38 yesterday afternoon, as part of an investigation into the riot and illegal assembly committed on January 28, 2025 in Limassol.
Seven other people had been arrested in the same case and six are still wanted.
The incidents took place on the evening of January 28, in the area of the indoor stadium of APOLLON, in Limassol, during the handball match between the teams of APOLLON and OMONIA 29M. Specifically, at around 9.25pm, after evaluating relevant information, anti-riot police squads intercepted a group of about 100 OMONIA 29M fans, wearing hoods and holding clubs and offensive instruments, were heading towards the stadium.
In order to stop the above fans, tear gas was used by the Police, while objects thrown at the police officers slightly injured one policeman.
The ICF Limassol continues the examinations.
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The threatening messages that reached many schools in Cyprus this morning were sent from Russia, a police investigation showed. These are well-known IPs from which such messages are sent to many European countries.
Bomb threats affect several schools across the country and the authorities immediately began to take the necessary measures on the basis of a common Protocol applied by the Police, the Ministry of Education and the Fire Brigade.
Police were alerted on Tuesday morning after new threatening messages were sent to various schools in Cyprus.
Initial information referred to a specific elementary school, but it later emerged that the threatening message was sent via email to other schools. Specifically, the same sources say that there are dozens of schools in Nicosia, Limassol, Larnaca and free Famagusta.
According to the Police Spokesperson, Kyriaki Labrianidou, under the supervision of the Assistant Chief of Operations, the Crisis Center was activated and the Police implements all protocols, while it is in constant communication with the Ministry of Education.
For its part, the Ministry of Education says that in full consultation with the Police, the Office of Safety and Health activated the updated protocol. This protocol includes checks for suspicious items by school staff, as well as on-site checks by the Police if necessary.
In a message to X, the police said that "in various schools across Cyprus, threatening messages have been received. The Police take actions based on a relevant Protocol for such incidents, while a Crisis Center has been established under the supervision of the Assistant Chief of Crime Prevention and Combating Crime. At the same time, the Police are in cooperation and communication with the Ministry of Education."
The message in its entirety:
"There is a bomb on the school grounds.
With swords up, we will make you run.
We claim your life because Allah's rule is our decree.
Hard is the wind whispering in your ear about the death that awaits you.
We will spread terror on your shore, as the brothers did in Sri Lanka.
Until we reach our designated star.
Our hearts will burn with the light of Islamic law.
We will fill the heavens with fire and pray.
The day the unbelievers will pay.
We will conquer every inch of European land.
Whoever doubts, we will kill him.
The blood of children will drink the sands of the desert.
Their cries will rise to heaven.
Your world will collapse in our hands.
In the end, only Islam will remain."
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Malicious was the fire that immediately endangered the six lives of the Chinese tenants at dawn in Paphos. This is the conclusion of the competent authorities, as announced a moment ago by the Assistant Police Director of Pafos, Michalis Nicolaou.
As he said in particular, it was found that the fire was maliciously set on objects located on the terrace on the façade of the maisonette of the Chinese tenants and then spread to the living room.
The fire and smoke that covered the entire house, Nicolaou said, injured the 74-year-old grandfather, the 40-year-old mother and the eight-year-old girl, while the other three people had only respiratory problems.
At the time of the fire, he said, all six people were sleeping in their rooms on the first floor of the residence. The panicked 74-year-old jumped into the void from the first-floor balcony, the Paphos Assistant Police Director said, resulting in fractures of his tibia and spine, while the 40-year-old mother and eight-year-old girl suffered minor burns.
The 12-year-old boy suffered more serious respiratory problems and had to be transferred to Makarios Hospital in Nicosia, while his grandfather was detained for treatment at Paphos Hospital. The rest of the family members, he said, have now been discharged from the hospital.
The moments of terror experienced by the Chinese family living in Paphos began around three in the morning. The fire in the maisonette, located in the Universal area of Paphos, broke out while the Chinese owners, 42 and 40 years old, their two minor children, 12 and 8 years old, and the grandfather and grandmother, parents of the man, 74 and 72 years old, were in it.
According to the spokesman of the Fire Brigade, Andreas Kettis, three manned fire trucks responded to extinguish the fire. Firefighters, Mr. Kettis said, found that the fire occurred outside the house, at a point where there were no flammable materials. Firefighters contained the fire after intervening using breathing apparatus and water pipes.
The residents fled the residence before the fire spread, the fire brigade spokesman said, but had to be taken to Paphos Hospital with breathing problems due to smoke inhalation, burns and other injuries while some of them tried to escape from the first floor of the house by jumping into the void.
