Three masked men broke into a Germasogeia home on Sunday night, bound a domestic helper with zip ties and duct tape, and fled with €1,500 in cash and gold jewellery, police said.
The alarm system sounded around 23:35 at the residence where an 86-year-old woman lives with her 34-year-old domestic helper, according to Limassol CID.
The helper told police she left her basement bedroom to check what triggered the alarm when she came face to face with an unknown man.
He pushed her back into the room and bound her hands and feet with duct tape and plastic zip ties, covering her mouth before destroying her mobile phones.
Meanwhile, the 86-year-old homeowner came down from her first-floor bedroom via lift to the ground floor and saw three people moving towards the upper floor. One returned, covered her mouth and spoke to her in Cypriot Greek, she told investigators.
The robbers fled minutes later. Relatives of the 86-year-old immediately notified police.
On-site examinations showed the intruders entered and likely exited through an aluminium sliding balcony door next to the main entrance, which had been forced open. The cash and jewellery were taken from a locked bedside cabinet.
The helper said the man who restrained her spoke English and wore black clothes and a balaclava. The homeowner reported all three wore black and had their faces covered, with one speaking in Cypriot Greek, leading her to conclude he was Cypriot.
Limassol CID investigations are ongoing. Police expect to collect CCTV footage from the area to track the movements of the perpetrators before and after the robbery.
