Four murder suspects to remain in custody

Four suspects in the murder of Thanasis Kalogeropoulos will remain in custody for another three days the Limassol District Court decided on Monday, despite objections from the defence lawyers.

The court hearing was meant to decide whether the suspects would remain in custody or be released until their trial, which on Thursday was set for January 23, 2024 at the Limassol Criminal Court.

Three of the four suspects objected to their detention until the start of trial, with only one defendant not objecting.

On behalf of the prosecution, there was a request for all four to be detained due to the possibility the suspects might not appear at the trial.

The three suspects said that they would be willing to pay bail and appear at a police station weekly.

Meanwhile, during the hearing, the prosecution told the court specific details that had emerged about the murder of Kalogeropoulos to defend the position of keeping the suspects in custody.

Kalogeropoulos, well-known to police, was gunned down at the end of October on his way to his morning swim in a busy area of Limassol. The assailants killed him from a vehicle at a two-metre range, then fled and set the vehicle on fire before escaping on a motorcycle.

For the first defendant (a 41-year-old motorcycle driver), the prosecution stated that his genetic material was found in the balaclava at the scene of the murder, and there is also written testimony that he showed a Kalashnikov and a pistol to someone via video call while he was in house of another suspect ahead of the murder.

For the second defendant (44-year-old, the house owner), the prosecution said that he had given his mansion to the 41-year-old, while he himself was paying €6,000 per month to rent somewhere else. The prosecutor said that the mansion had been used as the hub for planning the murder.

Also, the 44-year-old had a meeting with the victim before the murder.

Regarding the third defendant (22-year-old), the prosecution said that his involvement in the escape of the 21-year-old (4th defendant) can be seen from CCTV footage, while in various phases before the murder, he had been seen going and coming from the 44-year-old’s mansion. Evidence that may be related including shell-casings and clothes like those worn by the motorcycle driver, were also found in his home.

For the fourth defendant (21-year-old, motorcycle passenger), the prosecution added he was the person who took the motorcycle to the escape point before the murder. Furthermore, on the day of the murder, a car owned by the first defendant is seen on CCTV approaching his home, which is also confirmed by their telecommunications data.

The four suspects appeared in court under tight police measures, and all were wearing bullet-proof vests, as in previous hearing Kalogeropoulos’ family and friends had caused a scene outside the court.