The husband of a British woman murdered in front of her 11-month-old daughter in their Greek home says he saw the face of his wife’s killer as the criminal launched his attack.
Caroline Crouch, 20, Ms Crouch, after home invaders burst in while the family was sleeping at about 5am on Tuesday at their property in the Glyka Nera suburb of Athens.
The family’s dog was also killed.
The killer had been wearing a motorcycle balaclava to conceal his identity.
But the covering slipped to briefly reveal his face while he was struggling with 20-year-old Caroline, jumping onto the bed while she slept to keep her from screaming, according to the Daily Mail.
This meant that Caroline’s husband, Charalambos ‘Babis’ Anagnostopoulos, caught a glimpse of his wife’s killer.
(Image: Internet Unknown)
He told Greek media that the assassin was tall, dark-skinned, overweight and under 30.
Caroline Crouch’s 11-month-old daughter was crying next to the 20-year-old mum’s body when officers walked in on a distressing scene following a burglary at the family’s flat in in Glyka Nera, near Athens.
Officers were left distraught after watching the baby, who was unharmed, try to “wake up” the mum by hitting Ms Crouch with her hands, said police union president George Kalliakmanis.
The mum lay face down after being gagged, bound and tied to a bed, and her husband, 32, was nearby in handcuffs and with duct tape partially covering his eyes and mouth, said Mr Kalliakmanis.
(Image: ᴄᴀʀᴏʟɪɴᴇ ᴄʀᴏᴜᴄʜ/Instagram)
He hadn’t realised that his wife was dead until police came to free him.
Caroline’s funeral was held yesterday on the island of Alonnisos, where Caroline grew up.
Her grief stricken mother, Susan Dela Cuesta joined Babis, their daughter Lydia, and 2,000 islanders who had thought of British-born Caroline as their own.
Today, Susan and Caroline’s mother-in-law Georgia Gobaridou met at a hill-top cemetery overlooking the Aegean Sea with Greek Orthodox priest Father Lukas, the same priest who had conducted the funeral.
Meanwhile, Babis is said to have returned to Athens with Lydia.
He is said to have suffered hypoxemia, a low level of oxygen in the blood, and temporarily lost consciousness during the attack.
Helicopter pilot Mr Anagnostopoulos said he managed to call for help on his mobile phone after loosening his bonds.
(Image: Babis Anagnostopoulos/Instagram)
He told reporters afterwards that he “begged” the burglars not to hurt his family.
The dad said the intruders threatened to kill his baby if he and Ms Crouch did not tell them where they kept their money and jewellery.
He told them where to find £10,000 in cash hidden inside a Monopoly box. He said the couple had such a huge sum of cash hidden in their home because they had bought a plot of land and needed to pay builders for work.
Mr Kalliakmanis’ comments were reported by the Greek news portal Newsit, with other reports claiming the burglars made “many mistakes” by leaving “many traces” – fingerprints and DNA evidence – at the crime scene.
The victims’ clothing and items used to bind and gag the couple, including a pair of trousers, are being analysed by forensic experts.
(Image: Babis Anagnostopoulos/Instagram)
Three men stormed into the flat and it is thought a fourth man was waiting outside.
It is said the thieves stayed inside the family’s home for about half an hour continued to ransack rooms after Ms Crouch was killed.
No one has yet been arrested.
Police have drawn up a list with hundreds of names as part of the hunt for suspects, and are taking a fresh look at robberies that have occurred in the area.
They are looking into the movements of 300 known gang members who have been convicted of robbery and been released from prison since 2019, Ta Nea reported.
(Image: ᴄᴀʀᴏʟɪɴᴇ ᴄʀᴏᴜᴄʜ/Instagram)
Speaking to reporters outside the family home on Wednesday, Mr Anagnostopoulos said: “I wish no-one ever goes through what we went through last night. It was a nightmare.
“We begged the thieves not to harm us. We told them where the money was and asked them to leave us alone. The police will catch them.”
A £260,000 reward for information has been announced by the Greek Government.
The minister responsible for public order, Michalis Chrisochoidis, described the killing as “particularly heinous”.
He added: “One rarely encounters such barbarity in Greece, in Greek society, even among criminals.”