Two dead in Limassol murder-suicide

Police are investigating a possible murder-suicide in Limassol, with reports saying a local man shot and killed his former female partner and then turned the gun on himself.

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Reports say a local man described as a 35-year-old Greek Cypriot shot and killed his ex-girlfriend, also Greek Cypriot aged 25, in the early morning hours on Saturday. Their names were later released as Petros Papantoniou and Sofia Zenonos.

The man’s father reportedly discovered the bodies in a shooting range in Ayia Fyla, with the incident estimated to have taken place around 2am.

According to local media, the father of the alleged shooter had knowledge of his son’s whereabouts and knew his son would be going to the shooting range. Some media said Papantoniou called his father on the phone prior to the shooting incident, while additional reporting said the shooter arrived at the range alone and also notified Zenonos of his intention to commit suicide. Zenonos reportedly rushed to the shooting range to meet Papantoniou and stop him from killing himself, according to reports.

Preliminary investigations pointed to a hunting rifle as the possible murder weapon, which was found at the scene. It is believed that the shooter put the gun to the woman’s head up close and fired two shots before turning the gun on himself. 

A preliminary autopsy on site was carried out by two state forensic pathologists, while police were still collecting evidence from the scene.