Cyprus police uncover weapons supply route: new findings linked to Engomi cache

The Cyprus police said there may be a connection between six pistols seized on May 23 in Nicosia and a large shipment of weapons discovered last autumn in the Engomi area. According to the investigation, the weapons were intended for members of the criminal underworld and were being transported from the territory of the TRNC based on advance orders.

The incident began on the evening of May 23, when a police patrol in Aglantzia stopped a car carrying two men — a 34-year-old Turkish Cypriot and a 25-year-old Turkish citizen holding a British passport. During the search, cocaine and cannabis were found in the vehicle.

Later, police found six pistols, 299 rounds of ammunition, drugs and ecstasy tablets at the 25-year-old suspect's home. The weapons were sent for forensic examination.

Investigators established that the pistols found share common characteristics with a weapons shipment discovered in November 2025 in a cache under a tree in the Makedonitissa area of Engomi. At that time, police traced the network after the arrest in the occupied areas of two Turkish Cypriots with 11 pistols. Eight more weapons and components were later found.

According to law enforcement, the total number of pistols linked to this investigation has already exceeded 25. The investigation suggests that some of the weapons not found last year may have reached buyers in the Republic of Cyprus.

Both detainees are facing cases involving illegal arms and drug trafficking. Police are also checking possible links between the suspects and an organized smuggling network and identifying the circle of people for whom the weapons were intended.

The investigation is ongoing, and further arrests cannot be ruled out.