CRIME ROUND UP

 Pafos Live 20 May 2026

Members of the Police arrested two persons aged 44 and 45 yesterday, in connection with an explosion that occurred last month, on the façade of a kiosk in Limassol. 

Specifically, in the context of an investigation into an explosion on the façade of a kiosk in Limassol, which occurred around 1:00 in the morning of April 18, testimony and by extension arrest warrants were secured, against two persons aged 44 and 45, who were arrested in the morning hours, after a police operation. 

The two arrested were brought before the Limassol District Court, which issued a detention order for them for a period of six days.

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Members of the Anti-Narcotics Service proceeded yesterday afternoon, by virtue of a court order, to arrest a 23-year-old man in Nicosia.

An arrest warrant was pending against the arrested person, in relation to an ongoing case involving the detection of narcotic substances (a quantity of cannabis and cannabis resin weighing 230 grams and 40 tablets of ecstasy).

Following written consent, a search was carried out at his home, in the presence of himself, as well as a 20-year-old, where the following were found and confiscated in a bedroom:

• Amount of cannabis weighing about 10 grams.
• 12 ecstasy tablets.
• A pistol.
• Two magazines.
• 15 cartridges of various calibers;
• 100 tablets containing anabolic substances.
• Two mobile phones.

The 23-year-old was re-arrested for the above offenses, while the members of YKAN also proceeded to arrest the 20-year-old.

Today they are expected to be brought before the Nicosia District Court for the issuance of a detention order.

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Filenews

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.

As a result of the preventive policing operations, four persons were arrested, for various offenses including drunkenness, restlessness, traffic offenses and illegal stay on the territory of the Republic of Cyprus.

During the night, 499 vehicles were stopped for inspection and 692 drivers and passengers were checked. At the same time, 34 inspections of premises were carried out, from which 4 complaints emerged.

During traffic checks carried out, 164 complaints were made about various traffic violations, of which 72 concern driving at excessive speed. A total of 70 alcohol tests were carried out during which one driver tested positive. Five preliminary drug tests were also carried out during which two drivers were found positive. Also, as part of the police examinations, 9 vehicles were detained.

Coordinated policing operations, for the prevention and suppression of crime, continue daily, with an enhanced police presence, targeted controls and immediate operational action, in order to protect citizens and ensure public order.

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A 24-year-old man was arrested yesterday by members of the Morphou Police Department, in connection with an investigated case of abduction and deprivation of personal liberty, demanding money with threats, theft, etc.

Specifically, last Friday afternoon (16/05), an unknown person entered the home of a 69-year-old woman in a village in the province of Nicosia, demanding that she give him a sum of money with threats. The 69-year-old, in a state of fear, gave him the sum of €200, and then he left the scene.

On the same day and with the passage of time, the man in question went again to the 69-year-old's house where, again in the form of threats, he forced her into his car and took her to a bank institution where she maintains a bank account. During their presence there, the suspect tried to withdraw money from the ATM of the banking institution in question using the 69-year-old's credit card, but without success, and then took the 69-year-old back to her home.

The 69-year-old filed a complaint with the Police on the same day, while testimony and consequently an arrest warrant against the 24-year-old were secured for the case.

He was arrested yesterday and brought before the Nicosia District Court today, which issued a detention order for him for a period of six days. The TAE of Morphou continues the examinations.

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A drug trafficker was arrested as soon as he disembarked from a return flight from a Mediterranean island, according to a report by WalesOnline.

According to what was heard in court, police officers were waiting for him on the runway of Bristol Airport, in order to arrest Kane Evans, just as he was returning from a vacation in Cyprus. Authorities had launched an investigation against him as early as November 2025, when he was arrested after a raid on a residence in the Cardiff area, in which a backpack of drugs was thrown out of a window.

Evans was sentenced to 40 months in prison, with South Wales Police saying the 29-year-old believed he had escaped his involvement in the drug trafficking ring, but "his return from vacation proved to be short and unpleasant" when he saw authorities waiting for him.

Cardiff Crown Court also heard that in November last year officers from the Cardiff and Vale organised crime group raided a residence in the Ely area of Cardiff as part of the same investigation.

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The Limassol Permanent Criminal Court today (20/5) imposed various prison sentences, with the highest being seven years, on three defendants aged 23, 25 and 27, who were found guilty, following their admission, of serious cases involving the possession and trafficking of narcotics. The case concerns a vehicle that was located on 1 August 2024 in Limassol and which had been converted into a warehouse for the storage and trafficking of large quantities of narcotics.

Specifically, defendants 2 and 4, aged 23 and 25 respectively, pleaded guilty to charges relating to unlawful possession and possession with intent to supply to another person quantities of cannabis weighing a total of 20 kilograms and 2.54 grams, as well as preparations weighing a total of 9 kilograms and 285.77 grams containing the substance hexahydrocannabinol (HHC). These are preparations in the form of biscuits and jellies.

The 23-year-old defendant also pleaded guilty to similar charges in relation to an additional quantity of cannabis weighing 1 kilogram and 69.94 grams. The 27-year-old defendant pleaded guilty to charges of unlawful possession of 9.8 grams of cannabis, possession of 0.2529 grams of cannabis, and smoking a cannabis plant.

The Court imposed concurrent sentences of seven and five years imprisonment on the 23-year-old, seven years imprisonment on the 25-year-old, and concurrent sentences of imprisonment of up to three months on the 27-year-old.

It is recalled that the Assize Court had already imposed sentences on the remaining defendants in the same case, on February 16, 2026. Specifically, the first defendant, aged 23, was sentenced to concurrent prison sentences of more than 14 years, the third defendant, aged 24, was sentenced to three years in prison, and the fifth defendant, aged 21, was sentenced to 15 months in prison.

According to the Assize Court's decision, the narcotics, with the exception of the 0.2529 grams of cannabis found in the home of defendant 6, were found in a vehicle that was parked in an open plot in Limassol and was used as a place to store narcotics. Fingerprints and genetic material of defendants 2, 3 and 6, as well as other persons, were found in packages containing the drugs.

The 27-year-old stated that the small amount of cannabis found in his possession was intended for personal use and that he had used it a few days earlier.

At the same time, conversations were found on the 25-year-old defendant's mobile phone between herself and her 23-year-old co-defendant, through which they discussed distributing drugs in various areas in exchange for money.

The Criminal Court, in its decision, emphasized the seriousness of the offenses and the need to impose strict and deterrent sentences, due to the increasing trend observed in drug trafficking cases.

In relation to the 23-year-old, the Court stated that, knowingly and with full conscience, we assisted the main defendant in the case in storing large quantities of drugs for approximately 36 hours, until a safe storage space was found.

As mentioned, the 25-year-old trafficked the preparations in various areas, to persons who could not be located by the Police, acting as a trafficker and supplier of drugs for the purpose of financial gain.

The Court took into account the large quantity of narcotic substances in possession of defendants 2 and 4, as well as the potency of the HHC preparations. For the 27-year-old, the small quantity of cannabis in his possession and the fact that he was not facing a charge for supplying drugs to other persons were taken into account.

At the same time, the Criminal Court took into account, to the benefit of the defendants, their personal and family circumstances, their admission, their clean criminal record, the age and cooperation of defendants 2 and 4 with the Police, the addiction of defendant 6 to narcotics and the detoxification and conduct of the 25-year-old defendant in the Central Prisons.

The Court also noted that the role of defendants 2 and 4 was clearly more limited compared to that of the main defendant in the case, who played a decisive role in the management and distribution of drugs on the market and was in possession of much larger quantities and different types of Class A and B narcotics.

On the contrary, the quantities of drugs possessed by former Defendants 3 and 5 were significantly smaller, which differentiated their case and imposed a stricter treatment of Defendants 2 and 4.