Husband of British mum killed in front of baby in Greece 'didn’t know she died until blindfold removed'

Caroline Crouch’s husband Babis Anagnostopoulo has said he didn’t realise his beloved wife had been killed until the police removed the blindfold covering his eyes.

The pair - who lived in Athens with their baby daughter - had were threatened by a gang who demanded cash and jewellery in an early morning raid on May 11.

The trio tied the pair up – and gagged Babis – and allegedly tortured Caroline, a trained martial artist, for over an hour.

Their daughter was then held at gunpoint - forcing Caroline to scream for her safety.

The gang then turned their attention to the 20-year-old Briton and, according to reports, Caroline was suffocated in attempts to save her 11-month-old.

Police union president Mr Kalliakmanis told Ant1 News the first officers on scene were left distraught after finding the baby girl trying to wake her dead mother.

Charalambos Anagnostopoulos - known as Babis - returned to the scene of the murder in Glyka Nera, near Athens, two days after the Brit was killed by burglars.

Speaking outside his house on May 13, Babis told reporters: "I realised that my wife was not alive when the police freed me.

"My daughter, fortunately, was not hit. She went to the hospital as a precaution and, fortunately, she is fine."

Round-the-clock investigation

Mr Anagnostopoulos said he has been helping detectives, who are working round-the-clock to find who took Caroline’s life.

After the incident, Babis could only phone a neighbour for help - using his nose – as the helicopter pilot was handcuffed to a bedpost and had his mouth covered with duct tape.

The neighbour told MailOnline: 'He was screaming, he was screaming but I could not understand what he was saying because his mouth was gagged.

“I thought it was a medical problem. I went outside to investigate and I saw and then I knew it was much more important.

“Earlier in the night I heard the dog barking but I thought he must be fighting with the cats, they have four cats.

“I only wish I had come to investigate sooner.”

Babis and the baby are now being cared for by his mother.

According to The Sun, the men made a getaway with jewellery worth £21,500 and £13,000 in cash and the Greek authorities have now offered €300,000 reward for the capture of the killers.

‘In shock’

The neighbour continued: “I came outside and I saw the police were here. Babis was in shock and could not speak.

'Babis was holding the baby. I went inside and got a blanket to wrap up the baby. The grandmother came and took the baby.”

Investigators say the raid began around 4.30am when the gang approached the couple's house and broke a CCTV camera outside.

The trio allegedly killed the family dog before making their way up to an attic bedroom where the couple were sleeping with their 11-month-old daughter.

‘Heinous crime’

A spokesman for Greek police, Theodoros Chronopoulos, described the attacks as a 'heinous crime, committed with extreme ferocity.'

At about 6am Babis called for police help and officers rushed to the scene to seal off the area.

Babis and his daughter were rushed to hospital, while officers examined the house for evidence.

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