Police in Paphos on Wednesday morning were investigating a vehicle fire that broke out in the early hours mobilising the fire department.

According to the assistant police chief, Michalis Nikolaou, the fire broke out around 3am in a car parked at a supermarket lot on Hellados Avenue.

A fire brigade vehicle as well as a police vehicle went to the scene and the blaze was extinguished.

Investigations revealed the car belonged to a 33-year-old Paphos resident who was not at the scene during the incident. Police later located the owner who reported that he had parked his car at the lot after a mechanical problem an hour earlier and had returned to his residence on foot.

Officers cordoned off the scene and are engaged in ongoing investigation to establish whether the fire was set maliciously.