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Husband of Brit mum tortured in front of baby flown to capital as ‘only witness’ – World News

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Detectives probing the murder of a British mum who was tortured in front in her baby during a raid in Athens are said to have new information – and have flown her husband to the Greek capital to assist them.

Police reportedly took a helicopter to the Greek island where Caroline Crouch’s husband Charalambos ‘Babis’ Anagnostopoulos had been mourning her death with relatives.

It was claimed officers approached him following a memorial service and told him they had new information that he should see immediately.

Minutes before they arrived, Babis, 32, a helicopter pilot, was photographed hugging Caroline’s mother Susan Dela Cuesta outside the chapel, where mourners laid flowers at her grave.

Caroline's funeral last month
Caroline’s funeral last month

Babis and officers took a boat from the island to Skiathos, the capital of the Sporades islands, before flying on to Athens.

Apostolos Skrekas, a police spokesman, said Charalambos was a witness and they were speaking to him as new information had emerged, adding: “The data in the investigation cannot wait.”

Mr Skrekas said police had respected his wishes to attend the memorial service as they had originally planned to speak with him a day earlier.

Babis works as a chopper pilot
Babis works as a chopper pilot

He said: “The 32-year-old husband of the victim was transported to Athens from Alonissos, in order to be examined as the only eyewitness.”

Officers are also said to have been examining data from Caroline’s smartwatch as part of their investigation, as well as information from the couple’s mobile phones.

The mayor of Alonissos, Petros Vafinis, said yesterday: “As I was informed, the police told him that they caught a person at the airport and called him to go with them to identify him.

“Police were very discreet and there was no disturbance at the memorial. I do not know if he has been called for identification or to give a statement.”

Three men are alleged to have broken in to the couple’s home in the Glyka Nera suburb of Athens at 5am on May 11, while a fourth stood guard outside.

The men killed the family dog, tied up Babis, then tortured Caroline, 20, in front of her 11-month-old daughter for an hour to get her to reveal the location of family valuables before strangling her.

The killers made off with £20,000 of jewellery and around £10,000 in bank notes which Babis had withdrawn to pay for building work.

Last month police were said to be examining footage of a suspicious car and motorbike fleeing the area.

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