Child abduction attempt denied in Cyprus

Authorities in Cyprus have denied that there was a child abduction attempt at a hotel popular with British and Irish holidaymakers.

An investigation was launched following an incident on June 16 at the Anastasia beach complex in Protaras.

Dundee holidaymaker Greg Letford, 28, told the Daily Record newspaper that a couple had led two young children towards a waiting car and another person had a third child “ready to go”.

However, local police said only that a 19-year-old man had been questioned and released after tourists reported seeing a man filming young children on his mobile phone. Nothing untoward was found on his phone or during a search of his home, the force said.

Britain’s Foreign Office confirmed they had provided assistance to a British family following a “concerning incident”

. Police deputy spokeswoman Nikoletta Tyrimou told the Cyprus Mail: “We questioned the suspect, went through his phone and also searched his home.

“Nothing we found suggests that he is part of a child-abducting gang or that he was stalking children.

“He has since been released while police take statements from all those present at the scene.”

Hotel operator Tsokkos said the child abduction claims were “completely unjustifiable”.

The Anastasia beach complex is on the eastern tip of Cyprus.

A spokeswoman for Thomas Cook said: “The safety and welfare of our customers is always our first priority and upon hearing about the incident we immediately deployed our experienced resort team to the property to provide those customers in residence with individual support.

“Customers who did not wish to stay at the property were immediately moved to alternative hotels of a similar or higher standard.

“While incidents of this nature are extremely rare, we would like to reassure all customers that this is being taken incredibly seriously and we are continuing to work closely with the local authorities and the hotel as the investigation continues.

The Daily Record reported that the children involved were under 10 years old and that the three ‘abductors’ had been dressed up as waiters while pretending to work at the hotel.

The newspaper also claimed that suspects had been swimming with the children at the hotel pool and hanging around the area for about a week.