26 arrested in Operation Plegma raids after 171.5 kg cannabis seizure
Cyprus police arrested 26 people on 5 November 2026 in nationwide Operation Plegma against a suspected drug-trafficking network. The case stems from a February seizure of 167 kg of cannabis and 4.5 kg of cannabis resin alongside cocaine, followed by asset freezes worth about 500,000 euros.
🇨🇾 Cyprus
·
Arrested
26
Cannabis
171.5 kg
Police arrested 26 people on Thursday in the operation codenamed Plegma to crack
down on organised crime.[1][2]Officers carried out 27 court-authorised searches
across the Nicosia, Limassol, Larnaca and Famagusta districts and at the Central
Prisons, covering homes, other premises, vehicles and prison cells.[3][2]Police
said the arrests were part of an investigation into suspected drug trafficking,
participation in a criminal organisation, money laundering and illegal
possession of explosives.[3]Police said five defendants from the February
case were already in custody.[3][2]
The investigation began on 19 February when anti-narcotics officers stopped a
vehicle in the Nicosia district and found 11,480 firecrackers along with
cannabis and cocaine.[3][2]Searches linked to that stop then uncovered 167 kg of
cannabis and 4.5 kg of cannabis resin, a combined 171.5 kg of cannabis,
alongside 62 kg of cocaine.[1][2]During the 5 November searches, officers seized25,025 euros in cash, 37 mobile phones, a pistol, a hunting rifle, ammunition
and small quantities of cannabis and cocaine.[3][2]Working with the
anti-money-laundering unit, police obtained court orders freezing a house, plots
of land, 10 cars and two motorcycles valued at about 400,000 euros, plus 100,000
euros in funds.[3][2]
The operation was led by the Directorate for Combating Organized Crime, the
specialist unit dubbed the Cyprus FBI.[3]Police said the financial
investigation aims to trace suspected criminal proceeds and cut off the
resources that allow trafficking networks to keep operating.[3]
The 171.5 kg total is the sum of 167 kg of cannabis and 4.5 kg of cannabis resin reported from the February phase of the same case; the small cannabis quantities seized on 5 November were not quantified and are not included.
The 62 kg of cocaine reported alongside the cannabis is mentioned only for context and is excluded from cannabis figures, as is any combined drug total.
The submitted short account says over 25,000 euros while the detailed account gives 25,025 euros; the report uses the detailed 25,025-euro figure.
The sources name only the four districts and the Central Prisons for the 27 searches, not the specific homes or premises, so the pin is for Cyprus as a country.
No charges, court dates or outcomes for the 26 arrested people were reported, and the investigation was described as continuing.
The only image on the submitted page is labelled file photo and is not shown to depict this operation, so no media entry is included.
The submitted account rounds the cash seized on 5 November to more than 25,000 euros and describes simply two firearms, while the existing report records 25,025 euros with a pistol and a hunting rifle from the detailed Cyprus Mail account.
Police in Larnaca district arrested a 32-year-old man after finding about 1.03 kg of cocaine in his car and two hidden containers, plus about six grams of cannabis and resin at his home. He was held for a Larnaca court remand hearing as drug-enforcement officers continued a trafficking investigation.
The Nicosia district court remanded a 22-year-old man in custody for eight days on 30 October 2026 after police seized about 6.4kg of cannabis, including 2.56kg found in a parcel from abroad. The parcel had been declared as Lego toys and was addressed to a recipient in Engomi; a taxi driver who collected it was arrested and later released when no evidence was found against him.
A 19-year-old British passport holder was arrested at Larnaca airport on the morning of 23 October 2026 after customs and the anti-drugs unit found 26 packages holding about 28 kg of cannabis in two of his suitcases. He had flown in from Thailand via Dubai and was due in court for a remand order.
A Limassol criminal court sentenced a 28-year-old man to 10 years in prison on 21 October 2026 after he admitted trafficking a parcel imported from Greece holding about 8 kg of cannabis and nearly 2 kg of cocaine, which anti-drug officers handed him in a controlled delivery at a courier warehouse.
