Investigations are ongoing in the double murder case in Aigio, with police returning to the crime scene, the house where 26-year-old Olympios and his 54-year-old mother were killed. The goal is a fresh sweep of every room in the house, in an effort to confirm or rule out the possibility of a second perpetrator in the brutal crime they are working to solve.
The 65-year-old Italian man, who is considered the prime suspect in the double homicide, was taken back to the crime scene for a supplementary on-site investigation. According to sources, he was asked a series of questions about everything he claims to have seen and done on the morning of last Tuesday, while police awaited the results from forensic laboratories.
The Suspect Has Not Confessed
The 65-year-old continues to deny any wrongdoing despite mounting evidence against him. Surveillance footage from the night of the double killing showed that no one else entered the house. When police arrived, they found one of his garments that had been washed, yet still carried traces consistent with blood, and a strong smell of alcohol was noted throughout the house from the outset. The Italian defendant has his own explanation for all of this. He insists he discovered what had happened when he woke up the following morning and claims he then called a close family friend for help.
The suspect has now asked to be put in contact with the Italian Embassy and has requested to speak with his two sisters. He is seeking a psychiatric evaluation before his court appearance the following day, and maintains that he found himself caught up in a very serious situation without having done anything wrong.
Inside the police holding facility, the 65-year-old has been described as calm and composed from the moment of his arrest. He avoids discussing the crime and communicates regularly with his lawyer.
According to the suspect’s own account, on the night in question he fell asleep on the living room couch.
“That evening I went to bed with my partner and her son was sleeping in the next bedroom. At some point during the night, my partner was snoring very loudly and it was bothering me. I couldn’t sleep, so I decided to leave our bed and sleep on the living room couch,” the 65-year-old claimed.
He Had Contributed Money to the House
According to relatives and friends of the couple, in recent months there had been frequent arguments and friction between them. The 65-year-old is said to have contributed financially to a renovation of the house and had been pressing both victims to return at least part of the money he had given them.
“Something about money he had lent her and things like that. He wanted them to return the money so he could go back to Italy. He wanted to break up with her. They weren’t getting along,” said the 26-year-old victim’s grandmother.
Recently, the 54-year-old woman reportedly sold a piece of land she owned and gave the entire sum to her 26-year-old son. Witness accounts put the amount at close to 52,000 euros.
“I will chase him to the ends of the earth… I want his blood. I can’t understand how a person can change so much,” said the 54-year-old victim’s sister.
The Italian defendant is said to have been pressing both the mother and son to return his money, and there are reports that he feared they might suddenly leave for Germany, leaving him behind in Greece.
Investigators are also carefully examining testimony from witnesses who say the 54-year-old woman had called her son while he was in Germany several months ago and urged him to come back to Greece because she was having problems with her partner.
The Italian defendant categorically denies everything, and the funerals of both victims are scheduled for the following day.
The Dispute Over the Piece of Land
New information points to a disagreement over a plot of land that had been sold. The mother wanted to give the proceeds to her son, the son wanted to use the money to build a life in Germany, and the Italian objected.
One eyewitness who knew the family well and whose account is considered significant told authorities: “His answer was, ‘Dimitris, Maria went to bed at 11 o’clock. He didn’t say anything to me about Olympios. He (the Italian) went to sleep shortly after, in the next room. I looked around but there were no signs of a break-in. His exact words to me were that he got up at 11, went to the bathroom. Maria wasn’t in their room. He told me that Maria, whenever her son came to visit, would often go and sleep or sit in her son’s room. He knocked on Olympios’s door. He opened the door and found what I also saw.'”
These are critical pieces of testimony that shed light on what happened that night. Authorities are piecing together the account given by the man who has spoken to police, and the Italian suspect, who continues to deny any involvement, will soon be called upon to explain all of it.
