Rape suspect could be armed, police warn

POLICE yesterday warned the public that a man wanted in connection with the rape of 37-year-old woman in Strovolos on Thursday may be armed and was considered dangerous.

Police have named the suspect as Varnavas Cleovoulou, also known as Vakis, aged 30 from Mosfiloti in the Larnaca district.

Deputy chief of police Sotiris Charalambous said yesterday Cleovoulou was suffering from psychological problems and was thought to be armed and dangerous.

A few days before the attack, he had been released from prison, where he was being held in custody for failing to appear in court in connection with a series of break-ins.
But he failed to respect the terms of his release and police had been searching for him when the rape took place on Thursday.

A massive manhunt using helicopters was under way yesterday, with police concentrating their searches on the outskirts of Nicosia and the suspect’s home area.

At around 4am on Thursday, a man broke into the Strovolos home of a 37-year-old mother of two; he got in through her bedroom balcony window as she slept and tried to rape her, police said.
When the woman’s cries woke up her two children and maid, the man bundled the woman into his car and drove to Kotsiatis, where he violently raped and beat her. He then drove her home and left her outside the house.

State pathologist Eleni Antoniou examined the victim and confirmed she had been “violently raped”, adding she had many injuries all over her body including bite marks and bruises.
“She was violated heinously and in her own home where she had felt safe. I have requested that a psychologist stay with her and that she is seen again by a gynaecologist in the future,” Antoniou added.

Police said yesterday they believed the suspect had stolen £1,500 from another home in Strovolos after the attack.

It is believed the woman picked out Cleovoulou after looking at over one hundred police mug shots.

Cleovoulou has been placed on the stop list.