Student’s murder trial set to resume on Monday

The trial of a 35-year-old man accused of murdering his girlfriend in December 2011 in the northern city of Kastoria was postponed on Tuesday after the council for defense failed to appear at the Kozani court hearing the case.

The trial was attended by several members of the family of 21-year-old Andriana Gardikioti, a student from Corfu studying public relations at the Kastoria Technical College.

According to court records, Efstathios Efstathiou is accused of stabbing Gardikioti several times with a screwdriver in the neck and chest after she ended their relationship, subsequently dumping her body near a sailing center at Kastoria Lake.

Police apprehended Efstathiou shorty after the murder when he ran his car into an electricity pole while trying to evade a routine traffic check. A search of his vehicle revealed spattered blood in its interior.

Police questioned the 35-year-old following their discovery, during which he confessed to killing Gardikioti, also indicating the spot where he had left her body.

Authorities further discovered that Efstathiou had been arrested in Thessaloniki a few months earlier on charges of possession of pornographic material featuring minors.

The Kozani court heard evidence regarding a chilling post made by Efstathiou on his personal page of a social networking website before the trial was postponed until Monday. The post is said to have read: «We spent a whole year together and from now on we will spend eternity together. Have a good journey; I will be coming with you.”