A NICOSIA man has been arrested and remanded in police custody on suspicion of breaking into three houses in the Nicosia villages of Latsia and Yeri belonging to three separate women.
Police are currently looking for a second man believed to the suspect’s accomplice.
Meanwhile, police are concerned over a spate of burglaries reported in the last two days across the island – two of which were committed at schools in the Limassol district.
The concerns follow last week’s reports that serious crimes were on the rise. In 2006 there were 14 murders, 12 attempted murders, 30 rapes, one attempted rape, 135 arson or attempted arson attacks, 80 cases of armed robbery and blackmail, 654 drug-related cases, 36 bomb explosions, 3,082 break-ins, 1,618 thefts and 2,293 other serious crimes. With the exception of the arson and explosions, according to the Justice Ministry’s figures, the majority of the cases were solved.
Yesterday, the chief investigator in the case told a Nicosia judge that the culprit or culprits had at entered the houses by breaking in through the back aluminium doors of the houses.
In almost every case of burglaries in Cyprus, thieves enter by breaking in through the back doors of houses which usually lead straight into the kitchens.
The first burglary allegedly committed by the 26-year-old suspect occurred on February 16 when somebody broke into A Nicosia house via the backdoor and stole a woman’s handbag containing three credit cards, £40 in cash and her identity card.
The second complaint came from an army officer on April 7 who told police that somebody broke into her kitchen and stole her credit card and her army ID.
The credit card was later used to withdraw £350 at an ATM.
The final complaint came from a Latsia woman who told police that somebody had broken into her house and stolen £253 in cash.
Addressing the court yesterday, CID Constable Demetris Christou said, “From our investigations, a witness said that he recognised one of the men identified taking money out of the ATM with the woman’s credit card. He was called to Nicosia CID on the same day where he gave a voluntary statement admitting to the burglaries.”
The investigator added, “The suspect also named a second person who committed the burglaries with him and this person has an outstanding arrest warrant against him.”
Yesterday, Judge Angelos David remanded the 26-year-old in police custody for eight days.
Meanwhile, police in Larnaca are also looking into a complaint made by a woman from Larnaca who told officers that somebody broke into her restaurant between 1am and 11.30am on Monday night and stole £350 worth of alcoholic beverages.
The complaint was followed by another one this time from a 38-year-old man from Nicosia who told investigators that somebody broke into his house and stole his laptop and jewellery worth around £500.
The culprit or culprits are again believed to have entered via his back door.
CID officers in Limassol, however, have to catch culprits who broke into two separate schools in the last month.
Both complaints were made on Tuesday.
According to the complaint of a 32-year-old music teacher from a Limassol Lyceum, somebody stole a CD player as well as other musical instruments worth a total of £408.
The woman added that theft took place between Monday night and Tuesday morning and that somebody had entered the music room by climbing in through the window.
Across town at a Limassol primary school on the very same day, the headmistress reported to police that somebody broke into the school and stole two computers worth around £300.
‘People need to take security seriously’
DOROS ASHIOTIS from Nicosia owns a company that installs burglar alarm systems. He told the Cyprus Mail that people just do not take security seriously enough.
“In the last five years, I have to say that I have had a large increase in business,” he said.
“What has remained the same, however, is that people just believe that they won’t be targeted by thieves. They leave the doors unlocked or not secured well enough and I am not just talking about houses but cars as well. How can a weak aluminium door keep out an experienced burglar or somebody like a drug addict in desperate need of money?
“Our mentality has to change because times have unfortunately changed and we no longer live in communities were burglaries are few and far between.”
A police source yesterday told the Mail that they are also calling on the public to “exercise more caution when it comes to matters of securities of their cars and homes”.
“There have been increases in burglary complaints and the police are obviously looking into these complaints very seriously.”
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