The presence and action of the Police last night was intense, throughout Cyprus, with organized patrols in key points of urban areas, with the aim of preventing serious criminal acts, ensuring public order and increasing the sense of security of the public.

The result of the preventive policing operations was the arrest of seven persons for various offenses, such as theft from an employee, impersonation and driving under the influence of alcohol.

As part of these operations, during the night, 768 vehicles were stopped for inspection and 938 persons on board were checked. At the same time, inspections were carried out in 40 premises, with the aim of dealing with phenomena of delinquency, from which 12 complaints emerged.

During traffic checks carried out, 297 complaints were made, concerning various traffic violations. 477 alcohol tests were also carried out, during which 66 complaints were made, while another nine drivers were found to be driving under the influence of drugs. As part of the police examinations, 14 vehicles were detained.

Coordinated policing operations, for the prevention and suppression of crime, continue daily, with an increased/enhanced police presence, targeted controls and immediate operational action, with the aim of increasing the sense of security of citizens/protecting citizens and ensuring public order.

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The Limassol Permanent Criminal Court yesterday sentenced the 21-year-old defendant, who admitted to trafficking large quantities of drugs in a city park, with a strict seven-year prison sentence. In its decision, the Criminal Court underlined the increase in drug-related offenses, pointing out that the element of deterrence to protect society significantly outweighs it.

The Court imposed concurrent prison sentences of 4 and 3 years, while the longest sentence, 7 years, concerns the charge of possession for the purpose of supplying other persons a quantity of 2 kilograms and 355 grams of cannabis.

In addition to the amount of cannabis, the 21-year-old admitted to possessing cocaine weighing 76 grams and ecstasy pills weighing a total of 42 grams, with the intention of supplying them to other persons. The sum of €1.790, which was income from drug trafficking, was also found in his possession.

The sentence, according to the decision of the Criminal Court, also took into account another criminal case pending against the young defendant before the Limassol District Court and also related to narcotic substances.

In determining the sentence, the Court took into account his immediate admission, which was accompanied by remorse. The accused cooperated with the Police and admitted in his voluntary testimony, a few days after his arrest, that he was in possession of the drugs in order to supply them to other persons. His clean criminal record, his personal circumstances, as well as his young age were also taken into account.

The Criminal Court pointed out in its decision that "unfortunately, in recent years drug-related offenses have been on the rise in Cyprus and in such cases the element of deterrence, for the protection of society as a whole, strongly prevails".

The sentence is counted from the time the 21-year-old is in custody, specifically from August 8, 2025. In the case, the defendants are two more young men, who deny the charges they face, and the hearing has been set for the next period.

According to the facts of the case, on July 29, 2025, YKAN Limassol had received information that the 21-year-old was driving a specific vehicle and trafficking drugs in a park in the area of Agios Athanasios. Therefore, members of YKAN and OPE Limassol went to the park, where they found three persons. As soon as they realized the presence of the police, they fled taking advantage of the darkness and managed to escape.

A plastic bag was found at the place where the three persons were, which was confiscated. In it there was a large number of nylon packages, containing a quantity of cannabis with a gross weight of more than 2 kilograms, a quantity of cocaine weighing 79 grams and 100 ecstasy pills. Also, the amount of €1.790, a precision scale, adhesive tape, empty nylon bags and other items were located and confiscated.

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The Supreme Court rejected the application of the Appellant, who was found guilty of the offenses of acquisition and possession of child pornography by the Larnaca Criminal Court, for permission to register a case in the third and last instance.

The application concerned legal issues that, according to the applicant, arose from a decision of the Court of Appeal, dated October 31, 2025.

According to the decision of the Supreme Court, dated 17 February, the applicant was found guilty by the Larnaca Criminal Court, on 29 November 2023, of two counts of possession of child pornography and four counts of possession of child pornography, in violation of Article 8(1) of the Prevention and Combating of Sexual Abuse, Sexual Exploitation of Children and the Depiction of Sexual Abuse Material Law of 2014 (Law 91(I)/2014). He was sentenced to concurrent prison sentences, with a maximum of five years. His conviction was upheld in the second instance by the Court of Appeal.

With this application, the applicant requested permission to raise before the Supreme Court a legal issue which, as he argued, concerned an erroneous interpretation by the Court of Appeal of the term "possession", with the result, in his claim, "to abolish the need to have knowledge concurrent with the control over a thing". Therefore, the applicant raised allegations of errors in the decision of the Court of Appeal, in the form of a ground of appeal, in such a way that his application takes the form of a further appeal at third instance.

The Supreme Court, in a unanimous decision, held that the conditions of Article 9(3)(c) of the Law on the Administration of Justice of 1964 (Law 33/1964), which limits tertiary jurisdiction to purely legal issues arising from the decision of the Court of Appeal and are linked, inter alia, to a differentiation of settled case law, the need for a correct interpretation of legislation or a matter of general public importance, are not met.

Based on the Decision of the Supreme Court, "what is expressed by the Applicant/Appellant is his disagreement with the Decision of the Court of Appeal and the alleged erroneousness of the judgment of the Court of Appeal". The alleged "legal issue" in essence constituted a disagreement with the correctness of the judgment of the Court of Appeal and attempted to re-evaluate the case in the third instance, something that is beyond the competence of the Supreme Court in the context of this provision.

"It is therefore correct for the Respondent to point out that in the present case what is essentially sought is the revision of the correctness of the Decision of the Court of Appeal, which falls outside the jurisdiction of the Supreme Court by virtue of Article 9(3)(c) of the Law", the Court added.

According to the Decision, tertiary jurisdiction does not aim to correct alleged errors of the Court of Appeal, but to resolve specific legal issues that arise directly from its Decision. "In addition, as regards the reasons put forward by the Applicant for the purposes of granting the requested permit, i.e. differentiation of the settled case law and the issue of coherence of the law due to the interpretation given by the Court of Appeal to the term "possession" which, as it is preferred, conflicts with the rest of the case law, such issues do not arise in the manner proposed by the Applicant", added the Supreme Court.

"In essence, what is attempted and what is demanded by the Supreme Court through the present Application, is the reopening of the case and the re-discussion of the above issues, in view of the Applicant's disagreement with the decision of the Court of Appeal, an issue which clearly does not fall within its competence, as defined by Article 9(3)(c) of the Law", is noted. Therefore, the Supreme Court dismissed the application and ordered the costs thereof to be borne by the applicant.

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The big bet for the Anti-Drug Service, after the success of locating an unimaginably large amount of narcotic substances with a total weight of 233.5 kilograms in the auxiliary premises of a house in Strovolos, is not limited to the prosecution of 34-year-old Chr. O. and the 26-year-old S.S. The latter have been under 8-day detention since yesterday and will be interrogated.

However, what matters now to the examiners of the case are the big heads. The aforementioned, as all the facts suggest, had an auxiliary role in the action of a group with criminal activity and now this is where any efforts of the Police are focused.

The constable who yesterday presented the request for detention against the suspects before the District Judge Adriana Joan Solomonidou, after all, said that investigative work remains not only to determine the role of an unknown man, but also a blonde woman aged about 50, who allegedly had a relationship with the arrested, but also to locate their associates.

Information from "F", after all, states that the authorities consider the two arrested as cogs in a ring and not "masterminds" of the case.

As mentioned, the Police has a large volume of investigative work, since dozens of statements will be taken from the family and friends circle of the arrested, but also from neighbours.

In addition, the mobile phones of the arrested will be forensically examined, scientific examinations will be carried out on the evidence confiscated during the operation the day before yesterday, while their bank accounts will be opened.

It should be noted that the offenses being examined against the two suspects are those of (1) illegal possession of Class A and B drugs for the purpose of supplying to other persons, (2) illegal possession of Class A and B drugs, (3) obstruction and combating of proceeds from Illegal activities, (4) illegal possession of explosives without holding a license or approval in violation of the Explosives Law, (5) the illegal possession of a category B firearm in violation of the Firearms and Non-Firearms Act 2004 and finally (6) conspiracy to commit a felony.

For two days

During yesterday's proceedings in the Nicosia District Court, light was shed as to the way YKAN acted. After receiving information, which according to a source of "F" came from a cooperating service, the members of YKAN monitored the two arrested, who were allegedly trafficking quantities of drugs, for two days.

Their surveillance began last Tuesday and finally their arrest took place on Thursday shortly before noon.

The case unfolded when the 34-year-old and the 26-year-old worked together to transport from the latter's house to the warehouse of his father's house five cardboard boxes containing a total of 11.480 firecrackers.

Specifically, the 34-year-old left his home by car and went to the apartment building where the 26-year-old lived. As soon as he arrived there, the latter, together with an unknown man, carried the five cardboard boxes in the car. A woman, described as blonde, aged about 50, also had a role in the transport, who held the door of the apartment building open until the boxes were transferred to the 34-year-old's vehicle.

The arrests were controlled and took place when the two suspects went to the house of 34-year-old Chr. O. The latter, when he was informed that he was being arrested, replied "the jacks are mine". Later, in fact, he told the members of YKAN that he maintains two warehouses in his father's house in Strovolos, one on the ground floor and one on the roof. The large amount of drugs was also found there. It should be noted that during a physical search carried out on 26-year-old S.S. during his arrest, 27 grams of cannabis, 9 grams of cannabis were found in a bag in his possession. cocaine, precision scales and €230 in various banknotes.

This was followed by searches in the warehouses, where 167 kilograms of cannabis, 4.5 kilograms of cannabis resin, 62 kilograms of cocaine, 381 vaping devices containing the narcotic substance THC, 11,640 firecrackers, two pistols (one dummy), a revolver, two improvised explosive devices, more than 30 firearm cartridges, a sum of money amounting to €12,765 and two A4 glues believed to be impregnated with a narcotic substance.

The procedure

The process was supposed to begin at 09:30, however, it finally took place later and was completed shortly before noon. Lawyers Marinos Kaoullas and Dimitris Tsolakidis appeared for the suspects, respectively. The second had asked the Judge for time to study the wording of the detention request. The request was accepted and there was a break for about 40 minutes. When the coefficients of the proceedings resumed, the defense attorneys said that they had no objection to the request for detention, and this was approved.

230,000 drug doses

The case, however, occupied the sphere of public debate, while a characteristic position of the commander of the Anti-Drug Service, Christos Andreou, caused a sensation. He said about 230,000 doses of drugs were "withdrawn from society," indicating the positive impact on youth.

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The Police proceeded yesterday to arrest a 21-year-old man, in order to facilitate the investigations regarding drug and arson cases, committed last February and last July respectively, in Nicosia.

The 21-year-old had been arrested in Greece, under a European arrest warrant pending against him. Yesterday he was transferred to Cyprus and upon his arrival, he was arrested to facilitate investigations.

The arrest of the 21-year-old is part of the investigation of cases of arson, committed in July 2025, and drugs, committed in February 2025.

With the arrest of the 21-year-old, the total number of arrests for the two cases rose to six, while the investigation of the cases was undertaken by YKAN and the TAE Nicosia.