Five men ran a protection racket that forced Larnaca nightclubs to employ them as security guards through violence and fear for three years, police told a court on Friday.
The alleged gang leader, 42, and four accomplices aged 22, 31, 29 and 29 appeared before Larnaca District Court under tight security after Thursday’s coordinated police operation targeting organised crime.
Police found 19 videos on the phone of the youngest suspect, a 22-year-old National Guard contract soldier already charged with attempting to murder a 47-year-old businessman on 31 July. The footage, spanning 2023 to 2025, allegedly shows him displaying large cash sums and hiding objects believed to be drugs.
One video captured the soldier holding a bundle including three €100 notes and numerous €50 notes. In another, recorded on a motorcycle with a black bag of cash, he allegedly says the money came from collecting takings from a nightclub in the Mackenzie area.
Intelligence received on 12 December identified the 42-year-old as leader of a criminal organisation controlling large-scale drug distribution in Larnaca and the wider district, investigators told the court. The soldier handled distribution whilst the 42-year-old collected proceeds, police said.
The same intelligence indicated the 42-year-old heads the protection racket, with gang members posing as security guards at nightclubs and entertainment venues across Larnaca to collect payments.
A rival criminal organisation is battling for control of the same protection services in Larnaca, with members already arrested for other offences, police told the court.
Financial checks on four suspects showed their declared income did not match their assets. “From the above and in conjunction with evidence from the videos, suspicion reasonably arises that proceeds from the suspects’ criminal activity are in cash, believed to be kept in their homes,” lead investigator Angeliki Dagli said.
Dagli noted the recent turf war in Larnaca, where the rival gang is trying to seize control of protection services for nightclubs and other businesses.
All five face charges including participation in a criminal organisation, conspiracy to commit a felony, demanding property through threats with intent to steal, extortion and money laundering. Defence lawyers objected to detaining some suspects.
Thursday’s operation involved the Criminal Investigation Department, organised crime squad, Larnaca CID, drug law enforcement unit and financial crimes unit.
Officers seized €1,050 in cash, gold jewellery of unknown value, mobile phones, two bulletproof vests, two replica pistols and a collapsible baton from the suspects’ homes. Police seized two vehicles for examination.
During one search, officers found a firearm. The suspect had no licence for the weapon and was arrested on the spot for illegal possession.
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