Three more arrested over shooting of businessman

Three more arrests were made in connection with the shooting of 49-year-old businessman Stavros Demosthenous, bringing the total number of arrests to four, the police said on Monday.

The trio, three men aged 58 years old, 39 years old, and 30 years old, will likely appear in court on Monday.

The funeral service for Demosthenous will be held at 12.30pm at the Church of Ayios Kosmas of Aitolos, with burial to follow at Sfalangiotissa cemetery, in Limassol.

The family requests that attendees wear white.

They will not be accepting condolences, and kindly ask that that in lieu of wreaths, donations be made to the Association of Parents and Friends of Children with Heart Disease.

On Sunday, a 44-year-old former footballer was handed an eight-day remand after being arrested on Saturday night in connection with the case.

He is the owner of a motorcycle which was found abandoned in Limassol on Saturday and is believed to have been used by the perpetrator or perpetrators following the murder.

Stavros Demosthenous was most well-known for serving as chairman of second division football club Karmiotissa FC, and was shot while riding in the passenger seat of a car being driven by his 18-year-old son on Friday.

Police spokeswoman Kyriaki Lambrianidou had said on Friday that the shooting “took place about 500 metres from the victim’s home”, and that “initial information suggests that the victim was shot from a vehicle travelling in front of them”.

After the shooting, Demosthenous’ son immediately drove towards the hospital but crashed on the motorway. He then flagged a car down to stop and asked the driver to take them to hospital.

Demosthenous was taken to the Limassol general hospital, where he was pronounced dead. His son was not physically harmed during the incident.