A specialist diver has entered a lake in Xyliatou as authorities step up their search for the body of a six year old girl — one of seven victims linked to a Greek Cypriot army officer who is currently in police custody.
Meanwhile, fire services chief Markos Trangolas said that the fire services are drawing up a plan to search Kokkini Limni where the suspect says he threw the bodies of three other victims.
The suspect has told police that he dumped the body of Sierra — daughter of Marry Rose Tiburcio whose body was discovered in an abandoned mine shaft on April 14 — in the Xyliatou lake. Authorities have said that the search is particularly difficult because of low visibility and the topography.
A search with a robotic camera brought no results, and the diver is now expected to cover the lake focusing on specific areas, using specialised equipment. Trangolas said that the search will continue today for as long as there is daylight, “step by step.”
The suspect has also told police that he had put the bodies of three other victims — a mother and daughter from Romania and a woman from the Philippines — into suitcases and thrown them at Kokkini Limni near Mitsero.
Police and the fire service have been at Kokkini Limni since the morning as they prepare their search. Their efforts are hindered because of the high acidity of the water and police have said they are waiting for the go ahead from the fire services.
Trangolas said that divers with normal gear cannot enter the water and authorities are checking whether the robotic camera can be used. He said that the fire services were looking at other options.
“In one way or another, the search will be carried out,” he said.
Reporters at the scene said that a drone is being used to give a better picture of the situation on the lake. It remains unclear whether the search will start today.
Earlier on Thursday President Nicos Anastasiades voiced shock over the abhorrent murders of innocent foreign women and children and appealed for calm. (Anastasiades voices shock over abhorrent murders)
Police are under fire for the way they handled the reported disappearance of the women with Akel accusing the chief of police and the Justice Minister of criminal negligence and calling for their resignation.
The suspect, who went by the name of Orestis on social media, has been linked to seven victims — five women and two children, all of them non-Cypriot. https://in-cyprus.com/mitsero-murders-suspect-said-to-be-linked-to-seven-victims/
The first victims are understood to be a mother and child from Romania who were reported missing in autumn 2016.
British experts are due in Cyprus on Monday to help police with the unprecedented case.
Police are also looking for evidence at the Orounta firing range where the body of an unknown woman was found yesterday. Police had been led to the abandoned well by the suspect who did not say who the victim is — other that she was from Nepal or India.
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https://in-cyprus.com/mitsero-murders-police-to-search-kokkini-limni-xyliatou-lake-for-victims-photos/
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