Cyprus in hunt for Russian spy suspect

THE authorities in Cyprus stepped up their search yesterday for the 11th alleged member of a Russian spy ring who vanished after skipping bail, but police refused to answer questions about why the suspect was granted bail in the first place.

Police spokesman Michalis Katsounotos said police had "no indications yet" that 54-year-old Christopher Robert Metsos had left the island or crossed over into its breakaway northern Turkish sector.

Metsos, who says he is Canadian, is wanted in the US on charges that he supplied money to the spy ring that operated under deep cover in America's suburbs. He was arrested on Tuesday in Cyprus as he tried to board a flight for Budapest, Hungary, but a Cypriot judge freed him on 27,000 euro (22,232) bail. Metsos failed to show up on Wednesday for a required meeting with police.