Police under pressure after gangland murders
Law enforcement is still grappling with the motives behind two separate gangland killings that occurred just 37 hours apart.
Despite their efforts to chart out the hitmen’s tactics and escape strategies, the landscape remains obscured, with reports suggesting the two murders – in Limassol and Nicosia — might have been orchestrated by the same person.
The victims, Thanasis Kalogeropoulos, 55, and Alexis Mavromichalis, 45, were not only known to each other but had also played pivotal roles as witnesses in previous gangland murders.
One theory suggests that if these two murders are connected, it could be the result of collaboration between different crime syndicates aiming to eliminate both men.
On the other hand, if the two murders are unrelated, investigators have a more difficult task of unearthing the motives behind these assassinations.
Officers are scrutinising the past activities of the victims, their connections to various previous crimes, and their roles as key witnesses in murder cases.
In this intricate puzzle, police are also exploring alliances and potential motives of various criminal organisations involved in drugs and protection rackets.
However, the murder of Alexis Mavromichalis poses a greater challenge.
He fell victim to a sniper’s bullet in his Nicosia apartment, shot down on Tuesday around 9:15 pm.
The sniper positioned himself in a field opposite his apartment building, waiting for Mavromichalis to appear on his balcony.
The fatal shot was fired from a distance of 40-50 metres, causing the victim to fall, bleeding profusely.
Mavromichalis suffered a gunshot wound to the stomach, and he succumbed to his injuries at Nicosia General Hospital in the early hours of Wednesday.
The meticulous planning of this murder is evident, as the executioner was well aware of the surroundings and had knowledge of the victim’s habits.
The fact the victim was shot during a phone call on his balcony has led investigators to scrutinise his communication logs.
Closed surveillance systems are also under examination, and several persons of interest, including those who had disputes with Mavromichalis, have been asked to provide statements.
Notably, Mavromichalis had been targeted in five previous attempts on his life over the past decade.
Meanwhile, officers in Limassol are diligently gathering evidence in the murder of Thanasis Kalogeropoulos, which occurred on a bustling avenue in Limassol’s tourist area.
The shooting took place on Amathus Beach Avenue, indicating the assailants had a thorough understanding of the victim’s routines, as he was known to frequent this location for swimming.
The execution of Kalogeropoulos was carried out with ruthless precision, with the two masked assailants leaving nothing to chance.
Kalogeropoulos was shot at close range multiple times, sustaining injuries to his head and various parts of his body.
Investigators have obtained footage of two individuals riding a motorcycle, believed to be the masked killers who targeted Kalogeropoulos.
The photo was captured by a traffic monitoring camera on the Limassol highway, near the location where the perpetrators abandoned the car they had used in the shooting.