Two criminal investigators have reportedly cleared Cypriot police officers of wrongdoing in the death of a Bangladeshi migrant worker, Anisur Rahman, 19, according to information obtained by Phileleftheros.
Rahman died in April after falling from a fifth-floor balcony to escape a police check on an apartment suspected of housing migrants.
Following the incident, allegations surfaced that police forced entry and assaulted residents. The investigators, selected by The Independent Authority for the Investigation of Allegations and Complaints Against the Police (IAIACAP), reportedly found no evidence to support these claims during 30 interviews with the people who were inside the apartment, at the time of the incident.
The report states that officers entered the apartment with consent after receiving a tip about undocumented residents. Two occupants attempted to flee, with Rahman fatally falling and another sustaining serious injuries.
Phileleftheros reports that witness statements did not implicate police misconduct. Officers claim they followed protocol and did not require a search warrant as they were verifying residency status, not searching the premises.
The Authority overseeing the investigation will review the findings and may request further inquiries. The case also awaits the completion of forensic reports and the Authority’s comments before reaching the Attorney General’s office for final review.
Case background
Early on Wednesday, April 10, officers raided an apartment on the fifth floor of a building in Limassol, acting on a tip about undocumented migrants living there.
Two men, both foreign nationals, attempted to escape, jumping from the window.
The fall killed 19-year-old Anisur Rahman, a worker from Bangladesh, while the other man suffered severe injuries, leading to his hospitalisation.
Police said that two officers from the Aliens and Immigration unit entered the apartment after knocking on the door and obtaining the consent of the residents.
This account has been disputed in a statement given to in-cyprus and philenews by K.S., a person who was living in the apartment and was an eyewitness to the police raid, who noted “On Wednesday there were 15 people without uniforms, they broke the door in the morning and punched the person standing next to the door. Then they punched another person”.
K.S. also said that the flatmates were forced to sign voluntary return requests.
The death sparked demonstrations against racism and police brutality in Limassol and Nicosia.
One of the protests in Limassol was stopped by authorities, with participants accusing police of physical and verbal abuse.
