Athens man choked to death in home by robbers
Police in Athens Thursday were questioning a 57-year-old Greek man and a Romanian national, 50, in connection with the death of a 70-year-old man whose corpse was found bound and gagged in his home off Vathis Square, near central Athens, on Wednesday night.
According to investigators, the two men broke into the victim’s apartment on Wednesday evening with the aim of robbing him, tied him up and gagged him before searching the premises, but were thwarted by police who had been on duty in the area and were alerted to the break-in by passers-by.
The pair tried to flee but were cornered by officers and arrested in the apartment block. By the time police got to the victim he had died of asphyxiation.
The two suspects both have criminal records, police said. The 50-year-old is a convicted serial robber who has been on the run since February 17, when he broke out of prison, and the 57-year-old has been charged with fraud several times in the past. Both were to face an Athens prosecutor yesterday.
