By Elizabeth Georgiou
Cyprus police have uncovered the largest synthetic drug haul of its kind ever found on the island, after a coordinated operation that led to the arrest of a 68-year-old man in Larnaca.
The bust was carried out by the Drug Law Enforcement Unit (YKAN) in cooperation with the Intelligence Management and Analysis Service. During a search of the suspect’s home, officers discovered 993 A4 sheets of paper soaked in synthetic drugs, a method that makes the substances hard to detect and easy to distribute.
According to YKAN chief Christos Andreou, the scale of the seizure is staggering. Each sheet can be cut into around 300 individual doses, meaning the total haul could have produced nearly 300,000 doses. “This alone shows the seriousness of the case and the danger that was prevented,” Andreou said.
The suspect was brought before the Larnaca District Court on Wednesday, which ordered his six-day detention while investigations continue.
A dangerous, invisible drug
Preliminary tests show the main substance involved is MDMB, a synthetic cannabinoid that mimics cannabis but is far more potent and dangerous to the human body.
“It looks like cannabis, but it’s much stronger and essentially invisible,” Andreou explained. “That’s what makes it so dangerous.”
He stressed that this is the largest quantity ever detected in Cyprus using this paper-soaking method.
Not on police radar
What surprised investigators most is that the 68-year-old had no prior record with the drug unit. “He was not known to YKAN,” Andreou said, adding that the case emerged after intelligence gathered over the past few days.
Asked whether the drug-laced sheets may have been intended for Cyprus’ Central Prisons, Andreou noted that similar sheets had been found in the past, but only in small, isolated cases. “Never anything even close to this scale,” he said.
Links abroad under scrutiny
Investigators believe the sheets were likely soaked with drugs outside Cyprus, based on intelligence and the complexity of the process, which typically requires laboratory conditions. Adding to the mystery, the papers were found in different colors, raising suspicions they may contain more than one substance.
All seized material has been sent to the State Laboratory for full chemical analysis.
“The most important thing: it never reached the public”
Andreou underlined that the biggest success of the operation is that the drugs were intercepted before reaching the streets.
“The most important thing is that they never entered society,” he said. “They were taken out before they reached people.”
Investigations are continuing both in Cyprus and in cooperation with foreign authorities. The suspect is being investigated for multiple serious offenses, including conspiracy to commit a felony, illegal supply and possession of controlled drugs, and possession with intent to distribute.
