Ongoing investigation of pupil who handed out thousands of euros in school

Police on Friday are continuing investigations into the mystifying incident of a teen who showed up at school with €15,000 in cash and began distributing it to various classmates.

The incident unfolded among Year 1 students in a Nicosia gymnasium. According to the latest reports the father of the student in question allegedly told police that the cash which was his and had been hidden in the house, where his teen found it.

The authorities were alerted after the parent of a child who had been given €500 sounded the alarm telling his child the money ought to be returned.

The teen told the parent that other pupils had also received cash and had not retuned it, at which point the parent informed both the school and the police. The school then called the pupils who had received money asking for the cash to be turned in.

Statements have been taken from students, parents and educational staff, as part of the investigation into the case, police spokeswoman Marina Christodoulidou told the Cyprus News Agency.

Loizos Constantinou, head of the organised parents federation told state broadcaster CyBC that the matter now rested with the police.

“The school itself handled the situation impeccably, they could not have done more,” he said.

Nonetheless, the ministry of education had been informed and questions have arisen over whether the welfare authorities ought to have been implicated.

According to Alpha News, one classmate was given as much as €3,500 and planned to use it to buy a motorcycle, while others received smaller amounts.

Most of the cash was in €100 notes and were “crisp” Constantinou also said.

Investigations into the incident are ongoing.