The man gunned down and murdered in broad daylight in Limassol on Monday had been struck by 10 bullets a post mortem showed on Tuesday after police said they were worried about more bloodshed.

The autopsy showed that a severe head injury and injuries to vital organs from a gun were the cause of death for Thanasis Kalogeropoulos.

The post-mortem was carried out by state pathologists Angeliki Pappetta and Orthodoxos Orthodoxou. According to their findings, Kalogeropoulos had multiple injuries from a firearm.

During the post-mortem, two bullets were removed from the body, while reports said he had been struck by ten of them.

Earlier, police said they are on high alert after the daylight murder of 55-year-old Kalogeropoulos on the busy Amathountas Avenue as they are deeply concerned it may lead to further bloodshed.

Kalogeropoulos was gunned down on the Yermasogia street while on the way to his morning swim at a beach he frequented along the Limassol coastal road, after having dropped his daughters off at school.

Two hooded attackers dressed in black fired at him with a Kalashnikov rifle and a pistol from just two metres away.

Limassol police chief Lefteris Kyriacou confirmed on Monday that the victim had been involved with the police in the past – a phrase typically hinting that he had previously been involved in crime.

Local media reported that Kalogeropoulos had been called to testify in two previous murder cases.

Police are understood to be facing a wide-ranging investigation as Kalogeropoulos had many business dealings, which may be linked to the incident, while connections to past cases are also on the table.

Indeed, police immediately called in the victim’s family and friends for assistance in the investigation – with Phileleftheros reporting that he had been advised to be careful and take extra precautions but did not act on it. He thought he was being careful by frequenting the beach in the morning.

Initial investigations are focusing on CCTV, his movements from his Pareklissia residence, and recent phone calls.

A central focus of the investigation is the getaway car used by the attackers – understood to be two shooters and likely a driver.

The car was found not far from the murder scene but was set on fire to destroy evidence. Police found what they believe to be the two murder weapons inside.

The car had been declared stolen on October 7 in Limassol. A further twist is that the car’s licence plates had been replaced with another set which were stolen from a car belonging to a foreigner who has not lived in Cyprus for months.