A 28-year-old man was remanded in custody for six days on Tuesday after being charged in connection with an arson attack on a car showroom in Limassol.
The suspect appeared before Limassol District Court on Tuesday morning. His lawyers did not object to the remand application by Limassol CID, and the court ordered he be held for six days.
The fire broke out at approximately 4:15 am on Sunday 25 January inside the enclosed showroom.
Investigators established it was set deliberately: the perpetrator broke the glass display case, doused the interior with flammable material and set it alight.
Two luxury cars — valued at €120,000 and €60,000 respectively — were completely destroyed, and the premises also sustained damage.
Dozens of CCTV cameras covering the area of the arson and the Limassol-Nicosia route via Palaichori led investigators to the suspect, according to philenews.
Footage showed that minutes before the arson, a specific SUV pulled up to the scene. After the fire was set, and before the suspect returned to the car, the vehicle’s daytime running lights switched on.
The suspect then got in and the car sped away. Cameras also showed that both the driver’s and passenger’s sun visors were down.
The vehicle was tracked heading towards Agia Fyla and then through mountain villages to Nicosia. CCTV at a petrol station in the Limassol district captured an SUV with the same characteristics travelling towards the capital.
Limassol CID located the SUV outside a specific premises and placed it under discreet surveillance. When the 28-year-old got into the vehicle, he was arrested — initially on outstanding fine warrants.
He told officers at the time of his arrest that he had been driving the vehicle for one month. A check revealed the SUV belongs to a car trading company.
A search of the vehicle and the suspect’s apartment turned up seven mobile phones, two walkie-talkies and a military cartridge of 7.62mm calibre.
An arrest warrant has also been issued for a second person, who remains at large.
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