Ayia Napa covers a relatively small area. How is it possible for someone to go missing in a public space within the community, and yet the authorities are unable to locate them?
Sure, in the peak summer months of July and August, with temperatures over 40°C, nobody wants to be out searching through fields, rocks, and ravines—even if it’s for a person, a 27-year-old man.
The police, apparently, followed protocol. They contacted hospitals and camping sites—since there was information that the young man enjoyed camping—and they coordinated with the bicommunal crime team to contact authorities in the north.
All responses were negative. The young man remained missing from July 27, the day his disappearance was reported, until September 5, when his body was found by private detectives hired by his mother.
She had travelled from Serbia to search for her son, who had arrived in Cyprus for a holiday on July 18 and last spoke to her on July 21. She knew he was in Ayia Napa, staying in a rented room where his belongings were later found, untouched since the day he disappeared.
The protocol was followed, and the necessary communications were made, but what else was done? How do you search for someone who has vanished in a specific area?
Do you bring in search dogs, deploy helicopters over the community, send out drones, mobilise security forces during the early morning hours when they aren’t at risk of heatstroke, check local cameras, ask around at places young people frequent, put up posters, release the missing person’s photo to the public, or wait for the sea to wash up the body?
The case of 27-year-old Aleksandar Gligorevic became widely known thanks to his mother’s social media posts. His body, found in a decomposed state on 5 September, was discovered after 40 hours of investigation by private detectives, according to them.
Where? In Ayia Napa, which is not an endless city with vast, inaccessible areas or remote, untrodden places. How can someone disappear for a month and a half in such a small place, yet remain undiscovered? How were the authorities searching for him? From their offices, making phone calls?
On September 5, when the body was found, the mother was sure—even in its mummified state, she recognised her son.
For everyone else, the curtain fell yesterday with the official confirmation of the body’s identity. But not for the mother. Yet another mother is left asking how her child died. But a month and a half later, the answers are even harder to find.