Man arrested for €9,500 sleight-of-hand theft

Police have arrested a man in connection with an ongoing investigation into a case of theft by deception committed last Wednesday in Limassol. Evidence also emerged against another suspect for a second theft by deception involving a large sum of money, which was committed on the same day, in Famagusta.

According to police information, last Wednesday, a 46-year-old man went to a shop in Limassol, where he asked an employee to exchange an amount of $10,000 into euros. The suspect handed the employee a bundle of ninety-nine $100 bills and two $50 bills. During the process of counting the money, the suspect asked for his money back in order to check it again. Tricking the employee, the suspect gave him back a different wad of money, consisting of ninety-eight single-dollar bills and two $50 bills, making a profit of more than €9,500 euros at the employee’s expense.

A second suspicious man went the same day to a shop in ​​Famagusta, where he asked an employee to exchange an amount of $5,500 into euros, handing him a bundle of money, which consisted of fifty-four $100 and two $50 bills. During the process of counting the money, this suspect also asked the clerk for his money back in order to double check. The suspect then replaced the $5,500 bundle he had originally given the employee with another bundle consisting of fifty-four single-dollar bills and two $50 bills. Keeping the $5,500 bundle the suspect made a profit of about €4,500 euros, which was given to him in the exchange by the employee.

Police released photographs of the two wanted men with the aim of gathering information that could lead to their identification. One of the two suspects, the 46-year-old man, was located on Friday, in the area of ​​Ledras Street in Nicosia, where he taken into custody for the purposes of investigation.

The second suspect is still at large, while Famagusta and Limassol CID are continuing the investigation.