The eight people who are currently being held in custody in relation to the shooting of Demetris Andronikou in April were to be brought back to court on Wednesday after their victim died on Tuesday night.
As a result, the charges brought against the eight suspects are now set to be upgraded to charges of murder.
Andronikou, also known as “Demetroui”, succumbed to the wounds he had sustained in the shooting on April 23 late on Tuesday night.
Andronikou was shot three times in broad daylight while riding a motorcycle in the Nicosia suburb of Lakatamia. One bullet hit him in the neck.
An eyewitness told news website the Cyprus Times that he was driving behind Andronikou and saw him drop to the ground in a pool of blood.
“I saw him as he fell to the ground. He was in front me, I stopped. He was in a pool of blood. He was wearing a helmet; I was talking to him asking him if he’s OK but he couldn’t respond,” the eyewitness said.
“Initially I didn’t understand what happened. Another driver from across the road shouted it had been a shooting. I then saw three bullet casings.”
Andronikou had been described as “well known to police”, indicating that he may have been linked to organised crime in the past. He had been visiting a detained individual who was held at the Lakatamia police station on the day he was shot.
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