With a pistol and from a very close distance, two perpetrators attempted to kill a 34-year-old man yesterday afternoon on a busy street, disregarding passers-by and those engaged in activities similar to those on Anthoupolis Avenue.
The victim of the attempt is a person known to the authorities due to his connection with another well-known figure of the night.
The 34-year-old was leaving around 12:30 in the afternoon from the Lakatamia police station where he had visited two friends who were detained there.
He had left on his high-capacity motorcycle, wearing his helmet.
He took Anthoupolis Avenue, from the Zorbas traffic lights towards Nicosia. Just before the downhill slope near Super Home, a scooter approached the 34-year-old with two riders, who were also wearing helmets. Indeed, at some point, the two motorcycles were riding side by side, raising suspicions as to whether they knew each other.
The passenger, as all indications show and according to witness testimonies, pulled out a pistol and fired at the 34-year-old from a very close distance, with three shots. One hit him in the neck, while the other two hit his sides.
The victim immediately lost control of his motorcycle and fell to the ground, while the two perpetrators sped away towards Nicosia.
Information from Phileleftheros reports that at least three passing drivers saw, or were the first to notice, the motorcycle rider bleeding on the ground.
Indeed, one person mentioned that although he didn’t hear the shots because he was closed in his vehicle due to heat, he saw someone falling off a bike and immediately trying to remove the helmet from his head.
He stopped his vehicle and got out to offer help, and as he reported, the victim was breathing with difficulty and making a gurgling sound.
The investigative authorities are puzzled as to why the 34-year-old was moving at low speed while riding a high-capacity motorcycle, resulting in the two perpetrators approaching him on a scooter type of motorcycle, which is much less powerful and also carried two individuals.
As previously mentioned, they are closely examining whether the victim and perpetrators knew each other.
After the attempt, the victim was transported by ambulance to the Emergency Department of Nicosia General Hospital, where he underwent extensive surgery.
His condition is critical and is continuously monitored by doctors in the intensive care unit.
The crime scene was cordoned off, and members of the Criminal Investigations Department proceeded with investigations to collect evidence.
Three casings were found, which will be scientifically examined, while a description of the scooter on which the perpetrators rode was provided to the investigators for identification. Information about a motorcycle fire reported shortly after the attempt was found to be unsubstantiated.
Investigations are focusing on closed-circuit surveillance systems to determine if there is any footage showing the two motorcycles either together or separately before the murder attempt.
The recent criminal activity has led to a mobilisation of authorities and coincided with an unexpected event. Yesterday, the leadership of the Nicosia Crime Investigation Department changed hands, as the previous head, Andreas Lambrianou, was transferred to head the Information Management and Analysis Service.
Ioannis Giorgkatzis has taken over as the new head, who had previously served in CID during the investigation of serial killer crimes.
With several pieces of evidence in their hands, investigators convened at the Nicosia CID in the presence of senior officers from the headquarters.
After analysing the information and other data available, the initial actions to be taken towards specific directions were decided upon. The fact that the criminal activity is attributed to the interests of the night and the personal circumstances of the victim indicates to the investigators that investigating this crime is quite challenging without finding a witness pointing in a specific direction.
The next 24 hours are critical, and it is estimated that without scientific evidence on the located items or if the motorcycle used by the potential murderers is not found, then their identification is difficult.
Investigators have in their possession the mobile phone of the 34-year-old, for which they will request an order to access its telecommunications data in an attempt to locate evidence related to the case under investigation.
They have also approached detainees at the Lakatamia police station to determine whether the victim had expressed fears for his life to them.
It should be noted that due to yesterday’s murder attempt, the Anthoupolis – Palaihoriou road was closed for several hours, with drivers being redirected to other directions so that the police could collect evidence from the scene.
