Pafos Live 29 April 2025
Two men who had their faces covered with hoods robbed a couple of foreign residents of Kato Paphos last night. According to their complaint to the police, last night unknown persons knocked on the front door of their apartment and when they opened the door they were confronted by two men wearing hoods.
One of them was holding a knife and they asked in English for their money. When the husband tried to react, he was hit on the head while the perpetrators immobilized his wife, quickly searched the apartment from which they extracted a sum of money and jewellery of unknown value and fled.
The couple of foreigners, who are Romanians, were taken to the hospital where, after receiving first aid, they were discharged.
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A member of the Paphos police who was off duty arrested a wanted man yesterday for a case of kidnapping, robbery, demanding money with threats, assault with causing serious bodily harm, stabbing, and theft. This is a 23-year-old man who has been wanted since January 12, 2025. The member of the force, who was off duty, recognized the wanted man in a public place and proceeded to arrest him.
The case was reported to the police by a 41-year-old man who reported that at the beginning of the year a sum of money was stolen from his vehicle. He had even seen an unknown person move away from the area. A few days later, the complainant met the unknown man again who, according to the 41-year-old's allegations, attacked him, hitting him with his hands, while he pointed a knife at him and demanded money. The suspect allegedly drove the 41-year-old to a bank in order to withdraw money from an ATM. He was unable to make a withdrawal, but according to his complaint, the unknown man took the complainant's mobile phone and proceeded to transfer money to his account.
From the data of the transfer of the money, the police ended up with the 23-year-old against whom an arrest warrant had been issued and was wanted.
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Filenews
The 41-year-old man who was arrested on the evening of Holy Monday as the perpetrator of the unprecedented events inside the church of Agia Paraskevi in Geroskipou was sentenced to six months in prison yesterday. The 41-year-old Greek Cypriot was found guilty of charges of causing disturbance and disrupting a religious gathering inside the church.
On the evening of Holy Monday and while the Service was being celebrated in the church of Agia Paraskevi in Geroskipou, a man entered it, who began to shout and be aggressive, threatening the priest and the congregation and causing damage inside the church. Members of the Police were called to the scene, who located the man outside the church. When the police asked for his details, he attacked them, resulting in his arrest for the flagrant offense of assaulting a police officer.
As it was later established, he was a 41-year-old resident of Paphos. In his possession a firecracker and a small amount of drugs were also found and confiscated.
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More than a month after the attack on a 64-year-old woman-collector, the Pitbull dog, which is responsible for her serious injury, remains missing. The incident occurred at the beginning of March at a residence in Limassol, where the owner of the animal resides.
Despite the efforts of both the Health Services of the Municipality of Limassol and the Police to locate and confiscate the dangerous dog, to date it has not been possible to find it.
According to the latest information obtained by our website, the investigations conducted by the Agios Ioannis Police Station are at an advanced stage. It is expected that within the next few days the case file will be forwarded to the Legal Service for instructions. For the time being, some testimonies remain, while it is not excluded, based on the evidence gathered so far, that criminal prosecutions will arise not only against the owner of the animal, but also against other persons.
Despite the fact that a significant amount of time has passed since the shocking incident, the dog has not been found in the young owner's home. As reported by the Health Authorities of the Municipality, the prescribed procedures were carried out in cooperation with members of the Police, who visited the house, however, it seems that the animal had already been removed in an unknown direction.
It is recalled that officers of the Veterinary Services who went to the residence, after the injury of the 64-year-old, in order to examine the dog's behaviour, found that the animal had characteristics of a prohibited breed, and specifically of the dangerous Pitbull breed.
It is worth noting that, despite the owner's refusal to hand over the animal, the Municipality did not proceed with the issuance of a court warrant in order for the animal to come into its possession as a competent authority.
It is recalled that the 64-year-old collector had gone to the residence in question, after a scheduled appointment, to receive a monthly instalment of debts. After entering it and sitting on the sofa to issue the receipt of collection, suddenly the dog, while she was in the basement of the house, burst into the living room and attacked her, biting her hand. The 64-year-old was transferred to a private clinic in Limassol, where she underwent surgery, after doctors found that she suffered a fracture in her arm.
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From the Limassol Court to the Hospital for treatment, the 45-year-old suspect, who was arrested along with his 41-year-old compatriot in connection with the case under investigation of burglary and theft of tools from a building under construction, was transferred to the Limassol Court for treatment.
The two suspects were brought in the morning before the Limassol District Court, which approved the request of the TAE investigators and ordered their detention for a period of eight days. The 45-year-old appeared in court sitting in a wheelchair, with obvious injuries to his head, arms and legs. After the procedure, he was taken to the Hospital for medical treatment.
According to information from Filenews, the two suspects allegedly verbally admitted that they stole the tools, which were found inside their vehicle.
It is recalled that shortly after midnight on Monday, the alarm system sounded in a house under construction in the area of Agios Tychonas. The owner informed the authorities and members of the Police rushed to the scene, where they located and stopped a vehicle nearby, in which two people were on board. During the inspection, it was found that they were two Georgians, aged 41 and 45, residents of Limassol. From further inspection, various construction and power tools, burglary tools, as well as a small amount of cannabis were found inside the car.
After being informed about the offenses they allegedly committed, the 45-year-old passenger attempted to escape on foot, running into an adjacent field. A member of the Police pursued him and managed to stop him, making – as stated in the request for detention – the use of proportional force. The 45-year-old allegedly resisted during his arrest and hit the policeman.
The member of the Police was injured and transferred to the Limassol Hospital, where it was found that he had an injury to his left arm and lumbar. He was granted sick leave for five days.
The two suspects were arrested and taken to the Limassol Police Department, as suspects in cases of burglary and theft. Further examinations found that the 41-year-old has been illegally residing in the Republic of Cyprus since 2022
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A reversal in the case of the death of 66-year-old Andreas Michaelides last Saturday in Astromeritis, after an incident with a 57-year-old fellow villager, an action that was attributed by the Police to premeditated murder.
Yesterday's autopsy on his body did not show any injuries that would justify his death. Samples were taken for laboratory tests by the two government forensic examiners, Angeliki Papeta and Orthodox Orthodoxou, who performed the autopsy on the body of the unfortunate 66-year-old, however, it seems at first glance that the causes of his death are pathological.
Two private forensic examiners were also present at the autopsy, one on behalf of the family of the deceased and the other on behalf of the family of the 57-year-old who is being held as a suspect for his death, by court order.
After this development, it is expected that the Police will proceed and release the arrested man or will examine another case related to the incident that happened on Saturday morning, with the two fellow villagers arguing in front of a café and the 66-year-old receiving a blow to the head.
The 66-year-old, as announced by the Police, had filed a complaint about the blow he received, was given a medical form to go to the Hospital and on the way he lost consciousness and never recovered. As Filenews is informed, the forensic pathologists will wait for the result of the laboratory tests, however, their comment that "no injuries that would justify his death occurred", refer to pathological causes.
The autopsy regarding the murder case, with a 66-year-old male victim, which is being investigated by the Morphou Police Department, has been completed.
According to the forensic examiners, the autopsy so far does not reveal any injuries that would justify death. Samples were taken for laboratory tests.
The Police continue the examinations.
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A new case of internet fraud and extortion of money through false representations is being investigated by the Police in Limassol.
The perpetrators managed to extract an amount of money of more than €642,000, through a false e-mail, which they sent to a company based in Cyprus.
The case was reported to the Limassol TAE, by a representative of the company in Limassol. According to the complaint, in the previous period, the complaining company proceeded to payments for the purchase of services from another company with which they are partners.
In April 2025, the complaining company received an email, which appeared to have been sent supposedly by the partner company and in which it was stated that the bank account to which the payment of an invoice attached to the message should be made has been changed and it was indicated that the payment should be made to a new account, in a bank in another European country. The details of the alleged new bank account were mentioned in the message.
The company in Cyprus proceeded to pay the invoice, with a transfer of €642,658, to the new bank account, however, after contacting the partner company, it was found that the new bank account does not belong to the partner company.
The Financial Crime Investigation Office of the Limassol TAE is investigating the case.
On the occasion of this new fraud case, the Police recommends that, in cases where such messages are received, before citizens proceed with the payment of invoices, they always proceed to verify the message, through telephone communication with the partners, to whom the payment is to be made.
For this communication, a telephone number with which the two sides have been in contact again or which is indicated in messages exchanged with each other in their previous transactions should be used.
Company owners or directors are encouraged to inform their company staff about this form of fraud and to implement procedures to verify the payment requests they receive.
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A total of seven cases of robbery and assault with the intention of theft, committed between April 21-26, 2025, in the Larnaca district, are being investigated by the Police.
A total of seven incidents were reported, in which youths attacked civilians, using violence to remove personal belongings. Two victims suffered bodily injuries, while money, electronic devices and other items were stolen.
Based on relevant information, arrest warrants were issued for six persons of Syrian origin, aged 16–19, of whom five were identified and arrested on 28 April 2025, while the sixth voluntarily presented themselves in another case.
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A case of arson of a car that occurred in the early hours of the morning in Agioi Omologites in Nicosia, which belongs to a 33-year-old man, is being investigated by the Police.
Around 12:05 a.m., information was received about a fire in a parked car in the basement of an apartment building.
The Fire Department rushed to the scene and extinguished the fire, which caused extensive damage of unknown value.
From the first examinations, it was found that the fire was maliciously started
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The Department of Road Transport (TOM) proceeded with 34 complaints about illegal passenger transport from Larnaca Airport and the port of Limassol on 14 and 15 April, as part of a campaign to combat piracy in taxis, according to an announcement by the Ministry of Transport, Communications and Works.
The campaign was carried out under the guidance of the Licensing Authority and in collaboration with the Inspection Service of the Ministry of Labour, with the aim of ensuring the legality and protection of professional drivers and passengers.
In the Limassol district, 13 complaints were issued to drivers and owners of vehicles allegedly involved in illegal activities. In the Larnaca district, 21 complaints were issued around the airport, while 13 cases of vehicle owners are still being examined.
In addition, an intercity taxi was reported for violating the terms of a road use permit, a rural taxi for illegally transporting a passenger out of its headquarters and a pirate taxi driver for refusing to comply with supervisor's instructions, refusing to provide his details.
According to the announcement, three cases have already been referred for judicial investigation, while the data of the inspections have been transmitted to the Inspection Service of the Ministry of Labour for an assessment of possible undeclared or illegal employment.
The Ministry of Transport underlined that the intensification of controls demonstrates the commitment of the authorities to fight illegality in road transport and to promote a fairer and safer system for drivers and citizens.
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Developments took place this morning in the case of the two Hungarian women, who are accused before the Nicosia Assize Court, for the usurpation of Greek Cypriot properties in the occupied areas.
The two defendants today admitted to a number of charges related to advertising and promotion of houses erected in plots, which are located in the occupied communities of Agios Ambrosios, Akanthos and Kalograia, without the consent of the legal owners.
Specifically, the first defendant admitted a total of 21 charges and the second six. Following this development, the representative of the prosecution requested the suspension of the criminal prosecution for a number of other similar charges faced by the two defendants.
According to the facts, the two were promoting real estate in complexes illegally erected by a Turkish Cypriot company in areas belonging to Greek Cypriots or the Republic with a 20% commission.
At this time, the facts and the speeches of her lawyers for the mitigation of the sentence are heard.
The sentence will be given on May 9.
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Heavy fines, amounting to €22,700, were issued by the Customs Department in just three days for products smuggled into the Republic of Cyprus through the occupied territories. Among other things, these are several kilos of tobacco, boxes of cigarettes, pesticides, seeds, etc.
Specifically, an announcement by the Customs Department states:
On 25/4/2025, an officer of the Department, at the Astromeriti – Zodia crossing point, stopped a vehicle driven by a Greek Cypriot for control. During the inspection in the storage area of the vehicle, 7 packages of a total quantity of 3 liters of pesticides were found, as well as a package of 10 kg of seeds for planting, the passage of which is prohibited on the basis of the implementation of the Green Line Regulation. The products were confiscated and abandoned for destruction and the case was settled out of court.
The driver of the vehicle requested an out-of-court settlement of the offences for the amount of €8,800, which was accepted by the Deputy Director of the Customs Department and was released. His vehicle was returned with the payment of a return amount of €1,000 .
