Two days after his escape from the Lakatamia police station, the 19-year-old fugitive was located and arrested in Limassol on Sunday afternoon.
It should be noted that the uncle of the 19-year-old from Syros was arrested and taken into custody, as it appears the fugitive contacted him immediately after the escape; authorities are investigating whether the 45-year-old helped him flee the area.
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READ ALSO: The fugitive was arrested, but this “does not negate the fact that an escape took place beforehand,” the police admit
It should be noted that, according to what journalist and Limassol correspondent Erika Kavazi, this is not the first time an escape has occurred from these detention facilities.
After punching the window bars in his cell, the 19-year-old managed to break through them and subsequently escape from the Lakatamia police holding cells.
READ ALSO: Detention center security takes center stage at a meeting between Fytiris and Arnaoutis following the 19-year-old’s escape
Nikos Loizidis, President of the Police Branch of the pan-Cypriot union “Isotita,” spoke forcefully on the Alpha Kalimera program, stated that “all these problems start because some people are doing their jobs on the front lines or making arrests.”
“The holding cells are overflowing with people arrested on the front lines. Right now, there is overcrowding, reaching 200 percent. And the Minister himself and the Chief himself have said so. The detainees in holding cells right now are people awaiting trial, convicted criminals… 24-hour detentions, and individuals being held in custody. And at the same time, you have to separate minors, women, and people who may have mobility issues.”
READ ALSO: Police Headquarters in an Uproar Over the Escape: An emergency meeting led by senior officials reviewed the facts so far
According to Mr. Loizidis, there were 80 defendants and convicts in the Lakatamia police holding cells at the time of the escape.
“The Central Prison received only two… and the capacity of the Lakatamia police holding cells is normally 40. They are police holding cells, but they function as prisons that lack proper facilities. A detainee has the right to make a phone call. You have to escort him. Visitors must come to see him. A police officer must be present during the visit. He has the right to go outside for meals. And when we don’t have police officers in the holding cells—and we’re talking about 80 people who might be sharing a single cell with two or three others… there were five police officers—you can’t get the job done when you have 80 people. There are no motion sensors on the windows, no motion sensors outside, and no cameras with motion sensors that turn on when they detect movement.”
There are solutions to all of these problems, but they require funding, Mr. Loizidis emphasizes.
