Five men, four of whom are already serving life sentences for murder, have been referred to trial before the Permanent Criminal Court in Larnaca over an armed robbery at a businessman’s home in Larnaca two years ago.
The five men, aged 43, 42, 41, 29 and 27, will appear before the court on April 2. They face charges including conspiracy to commit a felony, robbery, night-time burglary and theft.
The robbery was reported on February 19, 2024, by the 58-year-old wife of the businessman. She told police that in the early hours of that morning, four hooded men wearing gloves broke into their home in the Faneromeni area of Larnaca.
According to the complaint, the intruders threatened the 58-year-old and her two domestic workers with garden shears and confined them to a first-floor bedroom. They seized their mobile phones and jewellery and forced the 58-year-old to open a safe.
From the safe, they allegedly stole watches, jewellery and cash worth €188,000.
Police later established, through analysis of CCTV footage, that five individuals were involved. Investigators said the suspects used a vehicle stolen from Limassol, which was later found abandoned in the bed of the Germasogeia river.
A few days later, one of the stolen watches was traced to a social media platform and found to have been sold to a jewellery shop in Lebanon. The shop owner told investigators he had been contacted from Cyprus about the sale.
On March 14, 2024, police arrested a 41-year-old, who is alleged to have made the call to Lebanon from Cyprus. Days later, a 30-year-old was arrested and admitted selling two stolen rings to a jewellery shop in Nicosia. A separate case was filed against him.
The four younger defendants were later convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment for the murder of Demetris Andronikou, known as “Demetroui”. He died on May 28, 2024, after being shot three times on April 23 on the Palaichori–Anthoupoli road.
In a voluntary statement, the 41-year-old, who had been arrested in connection with the Andronikou murder, implicated the three other convicts in the Larnaca robbery.
A 43-year-old was arrested on February 11, 2026, in connection with the robbery, while a 27-year-old remains wanted.
The 43-year-old objected to his continued detention and the court reserved its decision for tomorrow.
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