A 30-YEAR-old man yesterday stormed into Limassol’s Social Welfare office on Franklin Roosevelt Avenue, threatening to kill his social worker, wreaking havoc and pouring petrol over himself saying he would set himself on fire if they failed to increase his benefits.
“The young man yelled that he was being duped by Social Welfare and not given the amount that he is entitled to, but a smaller amount,” said Zoe Adamidou, Director of Welfare Services in Limassol.
“At the same time he was smashing everything he found in front of him, and then poured petrol on himself and threatened to set himself on fire. At some point he threatened to kill one of the office’s staff,” Adamidou continued.
“He was accompanied by his parents and I tried to speak calmly to them in order to find a solution, but they wouldn’t listen,” she said.
“The man claimed to have been receiving £1,000 per month in benefits back in England and said that here, the money he was receiving was not enough to support his family.”
He has been linked to drug offences in the past and is believed to be an addict.
The incident took place at approximately 9.30am, when the man entered the offices on the fourth floor of the building holding a container with petrol. He poured the petrol on the floor and on himself. He then ripped a man’s trousers as he grabbed a lighter from his pocket and threatened to set himself alight unless welfare officers agreed to raise his benefits.
Unable to control the situation, staff called the police. In the meantime the man caused considerable damage to property, kicking in doors and breaking windows. When police officers arrived, they tried to restrain him but with no success, as he attacked anyone who approached him. Police finally managed to handcuff him and take him to Limassol Police Headquarters.
“I’ve never seen anything like this before,” said a shocked Adamidou. “He was out of control and I believe that we would have had victims if the police had been a minute later in coming.”
He was later taken to the psychiatric ward at Limassol General Hospital, where he is being kept under police and medical supervision.
The suspect has a police record of past involvement in various cases, including drug-related offences.
Following the incident, Limassol Social Welfare Office employees held a one-hour work stoppage, protesting against the attacks they are subjected to by people under their supervision.
