Another delivery guy gets jumped

Police in Limassol are looking into a food delivery stickup on New Year’s Eve, the second incident within the last 48 hours in the southern town.

Law enforcement officials believe that two recent food delivery robberies may have been committed by the same individuals, with the town’s CID warning restaurants and fast food joints to exercise caution.

According to Cyprus News Agency (CNA), a 24-year-old male was robbed Monday evening, around 6:25pm, while he was on a food delivery run.

Two suspects reportedly attacked the victim and pinned him down while taking his a travel pouch with €330 cash inside. Media sources said the attackers were between 20 and 25 years old, medium build, and appeared to speak in a Cypriot dialect.

The incident took place just one day following a similar robbery, when a 28-year-old man was physically assaulted while he was on food delivery in the Neapolis area.

According to police, the incident took place around 7:30pm, when the man trying to deliver food came under attack by three men who had their faces covered. Three assailants managed to pin him down while taking the keys to his moped, a travel pouch with €318 cash inside, and the actual food order worth €20.

Sources said both delivery guys were Indian nationals. But officials told Knews they did not believe race or nationality was a motivation in either case.

Police also said both crimes appear to have been committed by the same gang, who called in the food order using a payphone and then waited for the victims to approach.

CID Limassol director Ioannis Soteriades told CNA that delivery drivers should avoid carrying a lot of cash on their routes. He also waned businesses that orders from first-time callers or customers using either public payphones or untraceable phone numbers should raise suspicions.

Soteriades also said delivery drivers should not put up a fight in ways that would cause harm to themselves or put their lives at risk.

Police have reportedly made courtesy calls to food delivery businesses to inform them of a number of precautionary measures.