Two people, aged 28 and 34, wanted for church burglaries have been arrested late on Tuesday after the oldest was caught driving without a licence and under the influence of drugs in Paphos.

Following a tip-off, officers stopped the car of the two suspects, a 28-year-old man and a 34-year-old woman, for a check around midnight, Paphos CID chief and police spokesman Michalis Nicolaou said on Wednesday morning.

The two have been wanted for breaking into two churches in Paphos between August 20 and 21 this year. The alleged perpetrators stole €700 from one of the churches, while they did not take anything from the other one, Nicolaou said.

Burglary tools were found during a search in their car, as well as small quantities of cannabis and methamphetamine.

They also had 25 firecrackers in their possession and some other items such as a wristwatch, the origin of which is being investigated, the officer added.

The 34-year-old woman, who was driving the car, was found positive for a narcotest. She was also driving without driving licence or insurance and cancelled vehicle registration.