Kyriakos Amiridis (59), Greek Ambassador to Brazil, was reported missing by his wife on Monday, December 26 after visiting her relatives in their holiday home in Nova Iguacu, a town outside of Rio.

A body was found in a burnt-out vehicle rented out to Amiridis on Thursday after an extensive search by Brazilian authorities.

Late Thursday, police had reported finding blood spots on a sofa inside the holiday home where the wife’s family apparently lives.

State-run news Agencia Brasil said that Kyriakos Amiridis was appointed as ambassador in January and spent his holidays in the house where he had been consul-general from 2001 to 2004.

Tragic soap opera love affair

Late Friday, lead investigator, Evaristo Pontes Magalhaes, stated in a press conference that police officer Sergio Gomes Moreira Filho (29) had confessed to killing Amiridis, Greek Ambassador to Brazil, in self-defence. Filho claimed that he was having an affair with the ambassador’s wife, Francoise Amiridis (40), a Brazilian national. Eduardo de Melo, Filho's cousin, has also acknowledged being a lookout and helping during the coverup, Magalhaes said.

The cousin claimed that the Ambassador's wife offered him 80,000 reals (approx. $25,000 US) 30 days after the crime when things cooled down. Francoise Amiridis has denied any role in the killing and insists she was not at home at the time of the crime.

Lead investigator, Evaristo Pontes Magalhaes, said late Friday at the press conference that the “evidence clearly puts the ambassador’s wife as a conspirator of the crime.” According to Magalhaes, Francoise had begun plotting with Filho to kill the ambassador after the couple had a row a few days before Christmas.

What was the motivation for killing the Greek ambassador?

“All the evidence suggests that she was motivated to cash in on the inheritance after the ambassador was killed so she could enjoy life with her lover Sergio,” the investigator said. He continued to say that a judge had ordered the arrest of all three parties, Francoise, Filho and his cousin.

Filho told police that during a fight, he strangled the ambassador but the blood evidence found on the scene proves otherwise, the investigator said. Investigators believed Filho stabbed Amiridis to death.

Further evidence showed that Amiridis’ body was removed from the house in a carpet. The ambassador's wife arrived with their 10-year-old daughter during this time, the investigator said. Magalhaes stated, "It was a crime of passion committed by Ms. Francoise and the military policeman...They were in a romantic relationship between them. She only told us that her lover -- let's call him that -- the military policeman, was the mastermind of the crime, executed this crime against her husband.

She denies taking part."

On December 31st, the Greece Ministry of Foreign Affairs released a statement on their official website saying, "We express our deepest sorrow at the tragic death of Ambassador Kyriakos Amiridis, a friend of Brazil, who throughout his diplomatic career served Greece conscientiously and responsibly."
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