An attempted burglary in Larnaca in the early hours of this morning ended in a high speed chase and one of the suspects being shot by police.
According to police, the saga began at just after 1am this morning when a woman from the Krassa area of Larnaca telephoned police and told them that men were standing outside her home and were attempting to break inside. The woman had been alone in the house at the time with her five-year-old child.
When police officers arrived, they found two men waiting in a rental car – from the Turkish occupied north of the island – while another three men had been inside the house. Upon seeing the police move in, the men in the car sped away while the other three men in the house escaped on foot and are currently at large.
Police gave chase and the high speed pursuit eventually came to an end at the Rizoelias roundabout on the outskirts of Larnaca. Officers had fired shots at the car resulting in one of the suspects being slightly wounded. He was later taken to Larnaca General Hospital where he was treated for his injuries while the other man was placed under arrest at the scene.
Investigators discovered that the two men who were arrested are Turkish Cypriots while the other three men who escaped – and who had broken into the woman’s house by disengaging the lock on one of the doors – are also believed to be from the north.
Meanwhile, police said that during the high-speed chase, the suspects were noticed throwing various items out of the moving vehicle which are believed to be stolen goods from other burglaries it is believed they have committed.
The two men are currently being questioned and are expected to be taken before a Larnaca magistrate sometime this morning where CID investigators will request to keep them in remand for more days while investigations continue.
Cyprus Weekly