Man Suffocated Wife To Death, Then Hatched Fake Robbery Plot To Mislead Cops

A man has been arrested after he suffocated his wife to death and then lied to police that she died during a home invasion. He told investigators the burglars killed her in front of their baby daughter.

On May 11, 20-year-old Caroline Crouch, a U.K. citizen living in Greece, was found murdered in the bedroom of her home in Glyka Nera near Athens. Her husband, Babis Anagnostopoulos, 33, told police that three burglars broke into their house, tied him to a chair and killed his wife before running off with close to $18,000. Their 11-month-old daughter was not harmed.

On Thursday, Anagnostopoulos admitted that he was lying.

He told police that the couple was fighting on the day of the murder. Crouch allegedly wanted to leave her husband and take their baby with her, reported local daily Proto Thema. "At one point she threw the child in the crib and told me to leave the house," said Anagnostopoulos. "I lost my temper, I suffocated her with the pillow. Τhen I made up the robbery. "

The 33-year-old had earlier claimed that he broke free from his chair and found his wife face down in the attic with the baby crying nearby. He told investigators that the robbers had pointed a gun at the baby to make Crouch comply with their demands. Anagnostopoulos said the robbers also killed their dog.

Police representative Apostolos Skrekas said the husband was taken into custody for questioning from the Greek island of Alonissos, where he was attending his wife's memorial service. "Husband of the victim was transported to Athens from Alonissos, in order to be examined as the only eyewitness," Skrekas told ANT1.

Police started suspecting Anagnostopoulos as evidence found at the scene did not match with his robbery story. Police found that the 33-year-old's smartwatch tracked his movement around the house, which contradicted his claim of being tied up and immobile, reported Sky News. He had also removed the memory cards of security cameras.

Authorities arrested Anagnostopoulos Thursday after he confessed to the crime during the interrogation.

The Greece government had announced a $365,000 reward for any information about the crime.