The 26-year-old man suspected of kidnapping his 23-month-old child from Limassol was on Thursday placed under arrest by authorities in the north.

According to Turkish Cypriot media, the man is now in custody on suspicion for trespassing in a prohibited zone and having departed the north of the island without the required permit.

Meantime social services in the north intervened, reportedly placing the child temporarily under the care of its grandmother.

Earlier, a request for assistance had been sent to the north via the bi-communal technical committee on crime and criminal matters.

The man, said to be a Turkish national, is suspected of having crossed into the south illegally on Wednesday and snatching the child from the mother’s home. He then fled back to the north.

It also transpired that the child’s mother had last year filed a complaint to the police, accusing the father of domestic violence.

Police are also investigating a video which appeared on social media appearing to show the child’s father in a car with the child.

Earlier on Thursday, police in the south arrested a 53-year-old Turkish Cypriot man in Larnaca on suspicion of aiding and abetting the kidnapping. A court ordered the man remanded in police custody for eight days.

The 53-year-old is suspected of engaging in a conspiracy to commit a crime, kidnapping of a minor, assault, causing grave bodily harm, and trespassing into private property.

According to the 35-year-old mother, the father and a second individual broke into the house and violently snatched the child.