Three handed life sentences for gangland murder

Three people were handed life sentences on Tuesday for their parts in the murder of 34-year-old Demetris Andronikou. The trio, 30-year-old Omar Suleyman, 28-year-old Mohammad Al Agka, and 26-year-old Mohammad Kasab, had already admitted their

By: cyprus-mail.com

Dec 17 2024
0
2 Views

Three handed life sentences fo

Three people were handed life sentences on Tuesday for their parts in the murder of 34-year-old Demetris Andronikou.

The trio, 30-year-old Omar Suleyman, 28-year-old Mohammad Al Agka, and 26-year-old Mohammad Kasab, had already admitted their guilt, while Al Agka and Kasab named Suleyman as the “mastermind” behind the murder

One of the trio fired the fatal shot, and all were sentenced at the Nicosia criminal court. They now join 42-year-old Yiasser Arar, who drove the shooter away from the scene, in receiving life sentences.

Arar was sentenced in October before turning main prosecution witness in the case against the other three.

Andronikou, also known as Demetroui, was shot three timesin broad daylight while riding a motorcycle in the Nicosia suburb of Lakatamia on April 23. One bullet hit him in the neck. He then died of sepsis arising from his gunshot wounds on May 28.

An eyewitness told news website the Cyprus Times at the time 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 being held at the Lakatamia police station on the day he was shot.