Newsroom
For anyone in Cyprus who has ever searched abroad hoping to find a better deal on a car, the alleged scheme sounds worryingly familiar: choose the vehicle, hand over the money and wait for it to arrive.
Police say that for a number of buyers, the car never came.
A 37-year-old man extradited from Britain was arrested at Larnaca Airport early Thursday in connection with 20 cases involving an alleged car import scheme worth more than €827,000.
According to police, the suspect allegedly presented himself as someone who could import vehicles from abroad and collected money from people looking to buy cars. Investigators say the promised vehicles were never imported.
The cases under investigation date back to 2022 and 2023 and involve alleged offenses committed in Limassol and Nicosia.
Police say the investigation involves money and vehicles with a combined value of €827,400. The alleged offenses include theft, obtaining property by false pretenses, and money laundering, among others.
The 37-year-old had been wanted under a European arrest warrant and was arrested in Britain before being extradited to Cyprus.
His return brought him straight into police custody. He was arrested at Larnaca Airport on the strength of a court warrant and was expected to appear before Limassol District Court on Thursday morning, where police will seek a remand order.
The allegations strike at a market familiar to thousands of Cypriot motorists, many of whom look overseas for used vehicles and rely on importers to handle a purchase they may never see in person until the car reaches the island.
Police investigations into the 20 cases are continuing.
