Greek Cypriot police continue hunt for escaped convict

The manhunt for 42-year-old convict Doros Theophanous, a Greet Cypriot serving life sentence for the murder of his pregnant partner and her three-year-old child in 2011, who escaped from prison guards on Thursday continued on Saturday with a large team of police officers supported by a helicopter, dogs and drones.

The convict escaped on Thursday from his parents’ home in Choletria, Paphos where he had been allowed to visit under heavy police guard.

On  Friday, Greek Cypriot police said the convict who managed to slip away from police is armed, unlikely to give himself in and has a plan to travel to Colombia via north Cyprus. Cyprus has no extradition treaty with Colombia.

Four people have been arrested in connection with the escape, three of whom have been released.

A 26-year-old man who was taken to court on Saturday told the authorities the escape was planned in detail from within the central prison and was not a spur of the moment run.

He said money was not an issue for Theophanous, who said he would cover the 26-year-old’s salary for the day he would be helping him escape.

The 26-year-old, from Limassol, appears to have admitted meeting Theophanous in Choletria, after instructions he received earlier from inside the prison.

He was told to be at the bus stop on the main road in Choletria at a certain time and had to give the details of the car he would be driving.

The suspect appears to have arrived at the meeting point early and was seen driving around in his father’s Mercedes, which caught the attention of villagers, who then reported the incident to the police.

Theophanous then got into the car, carrying two pieces of luggage and told the 26-year-old to drive off.

He also gave instructions on where to go and was dropped off on the motorway.

The suspect said that since then he was unaware of the convict’s movements or whereabouts.

The 68-year-old father and 43-year-old Syrian friend of Theophanous who were arrested were released on Saturday.

The court said testimonies presented against them by the police, which requested they be remanded for eight days, were insufficient.

A fourth suspect, aged 51, who was arrested on Friday, was released as nothing had surfaced against him.

They were suspected of conspiracy to commit a felony and assisting in the escape of a person in lawful custody.

Four prison guards and three police special squad officers, who were accompanying the convict at his parents’ house, have been suspended.

The 42-year-old was taken from the central prison in Nicosia to his parents’ house for a scheduled visit, from where he escaped.

The police admit the escape was pre-planned. Theofanous allegedly pretended to retrieve a beer from the refrigerator before disappearing. Extensive searches of his parents’ house have been conducted to locate a possible hiding place.

The incident has cast a shadow over the Police and the Ministry of Justice. Critics question how members of an elite unit failed to prevent the escape.

Theofanous’s decision to flee is particularly puzzling as he would have been eligible to apply for parole in two to three years, having served the majority of his sentence.

An arrest warrant has been issued.

Theofanous, a hairdresser, was convicted in 2011 for the double murder of his partner Yulia Oporok, who was four months pregnant, and her three-year-old child. He received 24- and 35-year consecutive sentences for the crimes.