A NICOSIA man was yesterday sentenced to life imprisonment after he was found guilty of murdering his wife and her lover in August last year.
Two of the three Nicosia Criminal Court judges yesterday ruled that Christoforos Charalambous cold-bloodedly planned the murder of his wife and her lover after learning about their affair.
In his dissenting opinion, the third judge ruled it did not appear that the killings were premeditated, because the defendant had not taken a knife with him on the fateful night.
It is the first time in local legal history that a man has been found guilty of murder without the body being officially identified.
There were angry scenes at yesterday’s hearing with furious outbursts from Charalambous’s parents, who maintain that their son is innocent and that “the whole thing is a set up”.
Charalambous, 28, had denied two charges of premeditated murder against his wife Anna Vasileva, 30 from Kyrgyzstan, and her 45-year-old lover Yiannos Demosthenous.
Demosthenous’ decomposed body was found last August in a pool of blood at his Ayios Omoloyites apartment. He had 38 stab wounds.
Vasileva’s body was never officially identified, but charred skeletal remains and teeth were discovered in a barrel outside the defendant’s home village of Askas.
Upon his arrest, Charalambous had initially confessed to breaking into Demosthenous’ apartment and finding him in bed with his wife.
He had entered Demosthenous’ apartment by jumping from the veranda of the victim’s neighbour and entering via the kitchen door.
After seeing his wife in bed with Demosthenous he told police he saw red, went back to the kitchen where he found a knife and returned to the bedroom where he stabbed them both in a frenzied attack.
“I went foggy and couldn’t see properly from my anger,” he told police officers.
He later retracted his confession, saying he went to Demosthenous’ apartment and that they both had an argument at his front door. He then claimed to have fought with Demosthenous, wrestled the knife out of his hands and stabbed him.
Despite leading officers to the remains in Askas, Charalambous still maintains he and his wife parted ways in Kyrenia and that he has not seen her since.
Key motives
Speaking about Charalambous’ motives, Judges Eleni Efrem and Lena Demetriadou ruled that five crucial factors had led them to the conclusion that the defendant had planned the murders of his victims and that the killings had not been committed in the heat of the moment.
l The fact that Charalambous had previously threatened to kill Demosthenous
l The fact that he tracked down the two victims after his wife left him
l His self control and patience in the lead-up to the attack, in which he deflated the tyres of Demosthenous’ car so the couple couldn’t escape, slept for a short while in his car before entering the apartment and planned with precision his entrance into the apartment.
l His repeated violent and brutal attack, in which he managed to stab both his victims, not stopping until he had finished them both
l His cunning entrance into the apartment where he eventually killed the victims
“The fact that the defendant decided to go to the apartment without a knife or any other weapon is irrelevant,” said Judge Efrem. “He was circling in and out of Nicosia to find Anna with Demosthenous and when he located them in Demosthenous’ flat, he remained there until his plan was executed.”
Summing up their decision, the judges stated that the state prosecution had successfully shown that Charalambous had been planning to kill the two lovers all along.
“The defendant killed his victims under the framework of an executed premeditated plan. The defendant continued despite the fact that he had the time and opportunity to rethink his decision to kill them both and abandon his fatal plan.”
Dissenting view
Judge Yiasemis Yiasemi, however, disagreed, deeming that Charalambous should have been charged with manslaughter and that premeditated murder had not been proved.
The judge questioned whether Charalambous was indeed aware that Anna was having an affair with Demosthenous.
“Of course, the defendant could have had suspicions that Anna could have been having an affair with Demosthenous, but that was never proved, especially on the night in question,” said Judge Yiasemi.
Judge Yiasemi said the fact that Charalambous entered the apartment without a knife eliminated the possibility that the murders were premeditated.
Referring to a previous court ruling, he said, “If a person on the spur of the moment without adequate provocation kills another with a lethal weapon, no doubt this would amount to unpremeditated murder, but not necessarily premeditated murder.”
The judge added that it was his opinion that the defendant should have been found guilty of manslaughter instead.
Angry scenes
The sentence sparked an angry reaction from Charalambous’ parents.
“This is a set up! The police have set up my son,” shouted Charalambous’ father upon hearing his son would be getting life.
He was ushered out of the courtroom by police.
Charalambous’ mother screamed, punched doors and walls and struck out at police officers who were trying to calm her down.
“You traitors!” she screamed, claiming Vasileva was “alive and well in the occupied area and you are sending my son to jail!”
“We have papers from the Turks proving that Vasileva crossed into the occupied area with my son! You cuckolds!”
Charalambous, who was rushed out of the court and back to jail as soon as the court announced that he would spend the rest of his life in prison, has ten days to launch an appeal against his sentence.
