Three remanded in Kofinou kidnapping case

Larnaca district court on Saturday issued a five-day remand for three men suspected of being involved in the kidnapping of a 22-year-old resident at the migrant reception facility in Kofinou on Wednesday morning.

According to the authorities, the three men, aged 32, 29 and 26 years old, were taken into custody to facilitate interrogations into the alleged kidnapping and physical assault of the Kofinou resident.

According to the police, the incident was reported around 8.30pm on Wednesday by two fellow nationals of the resident who said that they could not reach their friend by phone and feared he might have been abducted.

The two friends said that a vehicle carrying three individuals had arrived at the reception centre earlier on Wednesday morning and drove away with the victim.

On Wednesday night at around 10.30pm, the victim then contacted his friends and told them that he had indeed been abducted and was later released near the Kofinou overpass.

Upon arriving at the Kofinou police station later that night, he provided a written statement suggesting that the incident may be linked to financial disputes between him and the suspects.

At the station, officers noted abrasions on the resident’s face and neck. The man was then taken to the emergency department at Larnaca general hospital, where he received appropriate treatment.

One day after the alleged kidnapping, on Thursday, a 31-year-old Kofinou security guard was stabbed by his 32-year-old colleague at the reception centre, with the police reporting that the pair “appeared to have professional differences”.