Public warned against tackling criminals

OFFICIALS last night warned members of the public of the dangers of tackling violent criminals, after the murder of a man chasing a bank robber in Larnaca yesterday.

Police Chief Iacovos Papacostas paid tribute to Iacovos Kyriacou, expressing his sadness at the “unfair loss of such a heroic man”.

But he warned members of public to be careful in such circumstances. “Our fellow citizen’s actions were brave and very, very dangerous, because he chose to pursue an armed robber,” said Papacostas.

“In such circumstances, the police are begging the public to restrict themselves to just giving the police timely information, so the police can intervene as fast as they can and avert such tragic events.”

Justice Minister Sophoclis Sophocleous also warned how dangerous such acts of heroism could be. “It was a conscious decision by this remarkable man to chase a murderer, a thief; it was his conscious choice to chase a man and put his own life at risk.”

Sophocleous last night visited Kyriacou’s widow.

“It is our duty to stand by these people at this difficult time, where a murderer, a true lowlife, plunged this respectable family into mourning,” an emotional Sophocleous told CyBC 1.

“Iacovos Kyriacou left behind a wife, two small children, a father and a mother who are all here in a state of shock.

“What else can anyone say but express our deep sorrow; our true and deepest condolences,” he said, adding: “It goes without saying that we are here and we will remain by this family’s side.”

The chief of police admitted that Kyriacou’s intervention delayed the thief, enabling police to catch up with him.

“Nine minutes after the [bank] alarm sounded the thief was in the hands of the police; so it all happened in such a short amount of time,” he said.

Bank employees’ union ETYK’s president, Loizos Hadjicostis, voiced employees’ concern over security in the island’s banks.

“We have repeatedly expressed our concern over such phenomena, because not only are our employees at risk, but so are the customers. It is very dangerous,” he said.

The Cyprus Mail is the only English-language daily newspaper published in Cyprus. It was established in 1945 and today, with its popular and widely-read website, the Cyprus Mail is among the most trusted news sites in Cyprus. The newspaper is not affiliated with any political parties and has always striven to maintain its independence. Over the past 70-plus years, the Cyprus Mail, with a small dedicated team, has covered momentous events in Cyprus’ modern history, chronicling the last gasps of British colonial rule, Cyprus’ truncated independence, the coup and Turkish invasion, and the decades of negotiations to stitch the divided island back together, plus a myriad of scandals, murders, and human interests stories that capture the island and its -people. Observers describe it as politically conservative.