Larnaca Police Director Ioannis Kapnoullas said no internal investigation is being carried out into the death of a foreign national who was fatally injured after falling from an apartment building during an operation by the Aliens and Immigration Service in Larnaca.
Kapnoullas said police are investigating a case of unnatural death and that the file will be submitted to a coroner.
“From the moment there is a death, a file is prepared, statements are taken and the procedure is necessarily brought before a court through a coroner’s inquest,” he said.
Police officers giving statements
He added that the officers who took part in the operation are already giving statements, which will be included in the case file. However, he clarified that “there is no internal investigation in that sense, but an investigation into a case of unnatural death”.
Referring to the circumstances of the incident, Kapnoullas said officers had not entered an apartment and were not near the three people who fell from the fourth floor of the building.
“The incident happened as police entered the communal areas. They were not in a room, nor did police enter a room,” he said, adding that “the officers were not even close to them at that moment”.
According to Kapnoullas, the three appeared to react as soon as they realised police were present. He said it was likely that someone shouted “police”.
He also said those involved were rejected asylum seekers who had remained illegally in the Republic of Cyprus after the completion of the examination of their applications.
Asked whether they had any previous involvement with police, Kapnoullas said they had not committed criminal offences.
“They were people who had submitted asylum applications, all procedures were followed and at some point their applications were rejected. Since then they remained illegally,” he said.
He added that, according to the information currently before police, the man who died had been living illegally in Cyprus for around two years. Efforts are being made to inform his relatives through official channels, via the competent state authorities and the Foreign Ministry.
Escape attempts described as common
Kapnoullas described attempts by foreign nationals to flee during immigration operations as a “common phenomenon”, including by jumping from balconies or windows.
“If you look into it, you will see that it is common for people to jump from windows or balconies to avoid arrest,” he said, referring to another incident about a month ago in Larnaca, when a man and a woman were seriously injured after falling from a floor during a separate operation.
Asked whether the presence of police could lead some people to extreme reactions, Kapnoullas said this was precisely why operations are now carried out in the morning and in daylight.
“The operation began at 9am, in daylight. It was not a night-time operation or an ambush,” he said, adding that times with full visibility are chosen “precisely to avoid such behaviour or reactions”.
He also said both plainclothes and uniformed officers took part in the operation, with uniformed officers carrying visible markings.
Kapnoullas said police avoid entering apartments during such operations in order to limit the risk of extreme reactions.
“No warrants were used to enter apartments. Checks were carried out on people moving in communal areas,” he said.
Asked whether an operational mistake was being examined, the Larnaca Police Director said “the fact that the individuals fell from a floor does not automatically mean there was an operational mistake”. He added that every operation is assessed afterwards to determine whether any points require improvement.
“When someone decides to jump from such a height, it is extremely difficult to prevent,” he said.
The man died from his injuries on Wednesday night at Larnaca General Hospital.
According to the post-mortem findings, his death was caused by severe traumatic brain injury.
The other two injured people remain in hospital at Larnaca General Hospital.
The deceased was from the Democratic Republic of the Congo and was born in 1992.
A total of 22 arrests were made during the operation. According to Kapnoullas, the operation was not limited to the specific location where the incident took place, but covered the whole of Larnaca.
Source: CNA
