Isabella Mueller (crime writer)
Greece is one of the most popular vacation destinations in the world. But even in this romantic corner of the globe, crime does not stop. In 1931, a spectacular murder took place there, which was even described in the Greek media as the crime of the century. The murder victim was the wealthy Greek building contractor Demetrios Athanasopoulos, who was considered an insatiable womanizer. He had married the beautiful 25-year-old Sophia, whom everyone called Foula. Foula had many admirers. But at the request of her 45-year-old mother, Artemis Kastrou, she had entered into a lifelong union with Demetrios. She had no idea that her mother was almost subservient to Demetrios, with whom she continued to have a sexual relationship before and after her daughter’s wedding. But Foula’s mother was not the only woman with whom Demetrios cheated on his wife, despite her beauty. He regularly visited prostitutes, with whom he had violent anal sex. However, Foula did not share this preference, whereupon Demetrios raped her anally several times on the night of January 3 to 4, 1931. Demetrios would not tolerate Foula’s failure to fulfill her marital duties. Completely traumatized, she fled to her mother Artemis, who finally realized what a bastard Demetrios really was. She decided to kill Demetrios. To do so, she enlisted the help of her 18-year-old mentally disabled nephew Moskio, who was madly in love with Foula. He wanted to free her from the monster Demetrios so that he could then take Foula as his wife. On January 5, 1931, they put their murder plot into action. Moskio sneaked into Demetrios’ house, located in the Harokopou area of Kallithea, at night. He went to Demetrios’ bedroom, where he was sleeping peacefully. Then he shot him while Foula looked on impassively. Afterwards, Mosiko, Artemis, and the housekeeper Giannoula Bellou tried to burn Demetrios’ body. But the smoke was too strong, so they extinguished the fire to avoid attracting the attention of the neighbors. They decided to dismember the body. After doing so, they put the pieces into two packages, which they disposed of in the Ilisos River near Athens on January 6, 1931. Unfortunately, the packages did not sink and were discovered by passersby. After the body was discovered, the Greek police quickly tracked down Demetrios’ murderers. The murder caused horror throughout Greece. Even the Archdiocese of Athens published a circular letter with thoughts from Archbishop Chrysostomos, which was read from the pulpit in all churches on January 18, 1931. The subsequent trial was a sensation in Greece and lasted several months. Ultimately, Foula and her mother Artemis were sentenced to death for the murder of Demetrios. Moskio, who was only 18 years old, received a 20-year prison sentence due to his mental disability, while the housekeeper Giannoula was sentenced to life imprisonment. But that was not the end of the story of the murderous mother-daughter duo. The director of the women’s prison fell madly in love with Foula. He did everything in his power to have Foula and her mother Artemis pardoned, which indeed happened. This caused an absolute scandal in Greece. Nevertheless, both women were released. Foula did not marry the prison director, but a colonel, to whom she was married until her death in 1971 from heart disease. Her mother had already passed away years earlier. The story inspired composer Iakovos Montanaris to write the folk song “Criminal Mother-in-Law” with the verse: “Poor Athanasopoulos, what will become of you.” This song is still very popular in Greece today and is often sung at festivals.
