A masked gunman on a motorcycle fired approximately 16 shots at a Limassol business premises belonging to a 40-year-old Russian businessman on Tuesday, the fourth criminal act targeting him in less than six months, police said.
CCTV footage reviewed by investigators shows a figure dressed in black with a covered head firing at the premises before fleeing. The Criminal Investigation Department confirmed the number of rounds fired following a forensic examination of the site.
Despite holding police protection — extended to the businessman, his family, and his property — the attacks have continued, according to police. Investigators believe those behind the incidents are attempting to pressure the businessman over matters related to his protection.
The earlier attacks began on 26 November 2025, when an arsonist entered a fenced car park in Mouttagiaka on foot, doused the businessman’s luxury vehicles with an accelerant, and set them alight.
A second attack followed on 18 December 2025, when an assailant set fire to the entrance of a wine shop he operates on the Germasogeia coastal road.
The third incident occurred in the early hours of Tuesday 24 March, when perpetrators placed a low-yield improvised explosive device at the entrance of a fast-food outlet he runs near the old harbour. The device detonated just before 5 am, causing damage to the premises.
Two men, aged 19 and 21, arrested in connection with the March explosion have been committed for trial at the Criminal Court, which is due to sit on 12 May. Limassol District Court issued the committal order on Tuesday and remanded both defendants in custody until proceedings begin.
