Four held on suspicion of extortion

By Charlie Charalambous

TWO MEN were yesterday remanded in custody, bringing to four the number of suspects held in connection with an alleged night club protection racket.

Haralambos Agathocleous, alias Lemis, 29, from Trachoni, and Kypros Sotiriou, 34, from Famagusta, were remanded for five days as suspected members of a protection racket, which tried to rake in £600,000.

Apart from extortion and threatening violence, the two also face possible charges of transferring explosive materials and conspiring to commit a crime.

They were arrested yesterday when they voluntarily gave themselves up at Ayia Napa police station, and were later taken to a Larnaca court.

According to police, the suspects allegedly handed over a device to an unknown person to be placed outside the home of a witness who had information about the Kolossi night club bomb attack in Paralimni.

Police said Agathocleous and Sotiriou had various coffeeshop meetings with the night club owners, in which various amounts of money were demanded, so “nothing would happen” to the Kolossi venue.

The offer to ensure the night club would not be blown up came after a quantity of explosives was placed in a black bag outside the popular night club on April 30.

The two other suspects already in police custody are Demetris Hadjiconstantis, alias Jimmy, 30, from Larnaca, and George Andreou, alias Arabis, 31, from Vrysoulles.

Both were remanded in custody over the weekend for eight and six days respectively.

They also face charges of carrying explosives, extortion and conspiring to commit a crime.

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