Cyprus-Forum.com

[YFred]

This makes an nice and easy read for a Monday evening. So this is what Greek Tycoons get up to in their spare time. Oracle will be proud of him.

Greek Tycoon eliminated stubborn tenant.

By Chris Summers
BBC News


A property developer faces life in jail after being convicted of organising the murder of a stubborn tenant who got in the way of a £2m deal.


Papalexis, pictured on a throne in his office in Florida
Handsome, charming and the son of a wealthy London-based Greek shipping magnate, Thanos Papalexis had everything going for him.

But his personality - flawed by greed, impatience, lust and indiscretion - landed him in the dock at London's Old Bailey.

In March 2000, Charalambos Christodoulides was tortured and beaten to death in a deserted warehouse in Kensal Rise, north west London.

The 55-year-old, known as Charles, was a recluse who had lived in a flat above the warehouse for many years.

Property deal

At the time of the murder Papalexis had been trying to force through a £2m deal to buy the warehouse and then sell it on for a quick profit.

He hoped the money would prop up another property development in Holloway, north London, which had gone over budget and threatened to destroy his company.

But Mr Christodoulides, an unemployed loner and a creature of habit, was reluctant to move out and Papalexis, panicked by the financial consequences of the deal not going through, moved to get rid of him.

I have regaled her with stories which would make a screenwriter envious

Thanos Papalexis
Prosecutors claimed Papalexis hired two men to kill Mr Christodoulides.

But at the trial the men claimed Papalexis killed Mr Christodoulides and forced them, at gunpoint, to hide his body in a vehicle pit in the basement of the warehouse.

The jury was discharged after failing to reach a verdict on murder charges against them and they were remanded in custody to face a new trial.

Detectives believe Mr Christodoulides may have died while being tortured.

Ironically the Kensal Rise deal later collapsed, despite the removal of the sitting tenant "problem", and after his company folded, Papalexis moved to Florida.

New life in Florida

He married his girlfriend, Karina, had a child and started a new life as a property developer and businessman.

One of his scams was setting up "fractional membership clubs" on the internet which allowed people to have access to a luxury lifestyle of hotels, villas, speedboats and private jets.

Charalambos Christodoulides is thought to have been tortured before his death Jose Lambiet, a gossip columnist on the Palm Beach Post newspaper, told the BBC: "It was a sham; it was all smoke and mirrors. It's a brilliant idea but had to be done honestly and Papalexis didn't know how.

"He was a pathological liar. He wasn't even supposed to be working in Florida. He would renew his visa every couple of months but he had no right to work."

He claimed Papalexis threatened to have him killed after he wrote a couple of articles about him.

But Papalexis charmed other people and publicly exuded wealth and chutzpah.

In January 2008, he hosted a fundraiser for Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign at a mansion in Manalapan, Florida, which was attended by Bill Clinton.

But back in London detectives had not been idle. They had spent years amassing evidence against him. In the summer of 2008, they sought his extradition.

'Sexual predator'

Papalexis, who was described in court as a "sexual predator", was arrested in a pizza restaurant while dining with his mistress Marie-Helene Jarry, who later died after turning to drink when she discovered the truth about her lover.

Another former girlfriend, Rebecca DeFalco, was Googling his name when she discovered he was suspected of a murder.

DeFalco, went to the police and told them about a conversation she had with him in June 2004, during their brief but "turbo-charged" affair.

Papalexis had told her a string of lies, telling her he was an agent of the CIA and MI6 and would be retiring after one last mission in Iraq.

'James Bond' figure

She recalled asking him if he had ever killed a man, during his "James Bond" work for the secret services.

DeFalco told the court: "I didn't expect an answer. He turned around and there was a very long pause.

"He walks up towards me, pulls up a chair and sits in front of me and reaches for my hands. He looks me in the eye. He says 'yes, yes I have'."

His defence counsel, Michael Borrelli QC, sought to portray the 41-year-old as a deluded, attention-seeking liar who was seeking to cash in on Papalexis's predicament.

I'm not interested in selling my story to the press. I'm so offended

Rebecca DeFalco
When Papalexis gave evidence he was polite and articulate but came across as smarmy, deceitful and dishonest.

He claimed his wife had agreed to him having sex with prostitutes as long as he kept it "discreet".

Admitted lying

Papalexis also admitted fooling DeFalco and lying to her about loving her.

He said: "I wanted her to feel loved and to feel that I was a super-spy and that we would have great sex and great fun together."

A luxury apartment block now stands on the scene of the crime
He said: "I have regaled her with stories which would make a screenwriter envious. But I have never mentioned anything to do with this murder.

"She thought I was a spy. I had told her many episodes about missions, explosions, car chases, gun battles in the desert, stories that you would see in a movie.

"But nothing to do with the murder of a 55-year-old gentleman in a warehouse in London."

He also admitted lying to her about a set of rosary beads he had given her.

He claimed they had been taken from the hands of his mother after her body was exhumed.

[bill cobbett]

Reminds me of the dodgy dealings, on a smaller scale, of that tissy chap of some years ago. The one who pissed off to Lapithos. Now what was his name? Something like Basil Nodear.

[YFred]

Reminds me of the dodgy dealings, on a smaller scale, of that tissy chap of some years ago. The one who pissed off to Lapithos. Now what was his name? Something like Basil Nodear.

Be fair Bill, he didn't kill nobody as far as I know. His only crime I am aware of is importing of Molohiya mixed with other herbs and some of DT's oranges. That’s not a real crime as this one. Though I did offer the UK government the opportunity to bring him back for small consideration of a bounty of 1 million pounds, and they offered me mars bar instead or was it a place in the marathon?

[Nikitas]

The victim, judgingn by his name,. was definitely GC. The Papalexis bit could be mainland Greek. Whatever he is he sounds a little off the rails.

[yialousa1971]

The victim, judgingn by his name,. was definitely GC. The Papalexis bit could be mainland Greek. Whatever he is he sounds a little off the rails.

This is an old story but you are right the victim was Greek Cypriot and the property developer was from Greece. The murdery was a Albanian I think.