A police investigation on the gangster-like execution of businessman Stavros Demosthenous in rush-hour Limassol, is gathering pace and even at this early stage, it seems to be yielding major findings that will untangle complex questions behind the well organised horrific crime, witnessed by the victim's 28 year old son.
One of the fundamental clues in the assassination is the method and circumstances of the contract hit, resembling, as commented, a well-written Hollywood action flick. Monitoring, locking on the target, shooting through a van with great precision. And even the time. 0930 in the morning. The killers did not use the cover of darkness to cover their tracks and move in the shadows, but chose planning that put them right at the heart of rush-hour traffic, when and where no one would perhaps suspect they would act.
There are similarities to other cases, but yesterday's execution was perhaps the first time that killers drove right ahead of the victim's car, turned around and shot through their target. The perpetrators had planned this to the last, minute detail, pinning down the businessman's every move. They knew where his car would be headed, the point where they would force his vehicle to slow down, as well as his position inside. That's why they picked a turn near the Demosthenous' home and why all the bullets, as clearly seen in the photos, hit the front passenger's seat through the windshield, where the victim was sitting. The aftermath was also well planned, as the killers took every step to cover their tracks.
A former senior officer, highly experienced in investigating serious crimes told Politis that the hit was not organised in Cyprus. Based on the evidence that has been made public, he explained that the modus operandi and the killer's use of a van refer to assassinations executed abroad. His view is strengthened by the fire set to the van that carried the killer and his accessories, who vanished into thin air.
Motives
According to 'P' sources, police are focusing in two directions, both concerning the business activities of Stavros Demosthenous. Authorities have made clear from the outset that the killing is not connected to the victim's participation in football club's executive boards, being the former President of the Karmiotissa and Aris clubs.
It is also likely that the assassination might be linked to foreign companies based in Limassol, a possibility that has authorities on alert, in fear of a new blood feud breaking out. Initial reports point to underworld dealings, quite similar to those that led to the murders of Thanasis Kalogeropoulos in Limassol, Alexis Mavromichalis and Dimitris Andronikou in Nicosia.
Kalogeropoulos was killed at a parking place on the Limassol coastal front, shot in his vehicle. Mavromichalis was executed by a sniper on the veranda of his apartment, while Andronikou was once again, killed in his car, shot three times by a man on a scooter.