Police say deportation and detention orders have been issued against six of those arrested in an investigation into a conspiracy to commit murder and participation in a criminal organisation, with their deportation expected within days.
Two men aged 33 and 35, who were arrested on August 29, 2026, are due to appear before Famagusta District Court today at 10am, for their case to be referred to the Criminal Court.
The investigation began after information was passed to Cyprus Police via Europol by Danish authorities, concerning planned murders for hire in Cyprus. The intended targets were two foreign nationals from Britain, twin siblings, who were due to arrive in Cyprus on holiday.
Two twin brothers from the United Kingdom, former Liverpool MMA fighters Jamie and Aaron Small, have been named as the intended targets, according to reports by the Liverpool Echo. The pair are believed to have fled the island after European law enforcement intervened, and authorities, including Merseyside Police, are now conducting a multi-jurisdictional search for them. The plot has also drawn the Kinahan organised crime cartel into the investigation: a joint probe by The Irish Times, the Cyprus Investigative Reporting Network, Norway’s VG and Sweden’s SVT reports that Irish security sources believe the hit was commissioned by veteran criminals close to the cartel, using an “outsourcing” model to shield senior figures from law enforcement.
The plot came to light on August 10, when someone using the pseudonym “Sponge Jobb” offered $60,000 in cryptocurrency on the encrypted platform Signal for a contract killing within the EU, according to the same investigation. An undercover Danish officer posing as a hitman was given photos of the twins and told guns had been sourced from Turkey, before being directed to collect payment in Ayia Napa. Cyprus police arrested eight suspects, including a 33-year-old Irish national linked to the McCarthy-Dundon gang, two Norwegians and five Swedes; all remain in custody without charge as of September 8 and deny wrongdoing. The motive for targeting the Small brothers has not been disclosed, and Interpol is assisting the search for them.
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(Picture by the Liverpool Echo)
