The newly established Department for Combating Organized Crime (Cyprus's equivalent to the FBI) has officially secured its permanent headquarters on Ifigenias Avenue, near its junction with Nikis Avenue, concluding a month-long search for a suitable facility.
The selected property is set to undergo extensive structural and technical modifications immediately. These upgrades are deemed critical to meet stringent security protocols and to ensure full operational readiness for the approximately 160 personnel slated to staff the department.
Prior to selecting this location, an evaluation team vetted numerous properties across the capital. Several options were rejected because they either failed to meet the rigorous operational specifications required for high-level counter-crime operations or exceeded the designated state budget.
First Major Operation Yields Arrests Tied to International Networks
The finalization of the department's headquarters coincides with its first major success in the field, signaling its readiness to disrupt high-level criminal enterprises.
During a coordinated operation executed in the Limassol district last Friday, operatives arrested three suspects and seized a significant cache of evidence. Investigators confirm that the confiscated materials directly link the suspects to multiple open criminal cases currently under investigation.
Furthermore, police sources indicate that the scope of this file extends well beyond Cyprus, as the evidence connects the suspects to several ongoing criminal cases abroad. The department is already in communication with international law enforcement agencies to coordinate further actions.
This initial breakthrough underscores the operational capacity of the new unit, which is poised to assume the leading role in dismantling domestic and transnational organized crime networks once fully deployed at its new Nicosia headquarters.
