Brains behind 1997 murder of Russian hitman nabbed

The man authorities believe masterminded the murder of Russian hitman Alexander Solonik and his girlfriend in Athens in 1997 has been arrested at Thessaloniki’s international airport, it was reported Tuesday. 

The suspect is a 48-year-old Greek national from Georgia with a pending arrest warrant in connection with the murders. He was stopped by Greek police at the airport on Monday afternoon after flying from Cyprus.

Solonik had fled his country to Greece using a fake passport, which he reportedly secured from the Greek Consulate in Moscow.

He was found strangled in the Athenian suburb of Varybobi. Three months later, police found the dismembered body of his 21-year-old model girlfriend, a former “Miss Russia,” Svetlana Kotova, stuffed in a suitcase. 

Russian hitman Alexander Pustovalov was sentenced to 24 years in prison in 2016 for killing six people, including Solonik and Kotova.