Man held for rape, murder of 11-year-old
A 41-year-old man was yesterday detained by police in Arcadia, in the Peloponnese, on charges of abduction, sexual abuse and murder after allegedly admitting to the rape of an 11-year-old girl from the village of Elaiohori and throwing her into a well, where her body was found by police early yesterday morning. The suspect, an Albanian immigrant who had lived in the village for 14 years with his wife and teenage son, was taken in for questioning on Sunday afternoon following the Bulgarian girl’s disappearance late on Saturday. The child’s parents reported her missing to police who activated «Amber Alert» – a notification system for missing children. The 41-year-old initially claimed to know nothing about the girl and had even participated in a search organized by locals, police said. Following several hours of questioning, the suspect confessed to the crime early yesterday morning and led officers to the spot where the girl’s body had been dumped. The body was recovered from a 10-meter-deep well in a village south of Elaiohori. A coroner was to determine whether the girl drowned or was already dead when thrown into the well. The 11-year-old was last seen by residents of Elaiohori late on Saturday night in the village’s central square. Some witnesses claimed to have seen the 41-year-old approach the girl and then drive off with her in his car. According to police, the suspect admitted to luring the girl into his car by promising to drive her home. He allegedly confessed to raping the girl inside the car before dumping her, alive, into the well. Police said the girl’s parents and the alleged perpetrator’s 17-year-old son were being offered the support of state psychiatrists.
