A disagreement over land boundaries is behind an attempted murder in Paphos on Saturday night, assistant Paphos police chief Michalis Nicolaou said on Sunday.

A 41-year-old Greek Cypriot Limassol man was shot in the stomach, leading to police launching an attempted murder investigation, it announced on Sunday.

Nicolaou said the victim and the 55-year-old Paphos man, also a Greek Cypriot, arrested later have neighbouring plots in the village, where the Limassol man has a holiday home, and they have disagreed about where the boundary is in the past.

The older man was taken before Paphos district court on Sunday, which remanded him in police custody for eight days.

He has denied being involved and said at the time of the shooting he was a at a wedding reception of a family member.

Nicolaou said Paphos CID is investigating a case of attempted murder, illegal possession, transport and use of a gun and explosives.

At 9.45pm on Saturday, police received information that someone walking along the main road into Armageti village found another person lying at the edge of the road who had been injured.

Officers went to the scene, where they found the victim with wounds to the stomach which appeared to have been caused by a hunting rifle.

Police remain at the scene where an intense investigation is ongoing.

The injured man was taken to Paphos general hospital where an operation was carried out but due to the seriousness of his condition was then transferred to the intensive care unit at Nicosia general hospital.

Nicolaou said his condition is critical.

Investigations led police to arrest the 55-year-old resident at 2.45 on Sunday morning. He is expected to apart before a court later on Sunday.

Nicolaou said they are investigating the possibility that a fight broke out at one of the people’s homes and then the shooting followed.