British woman, 20, is tortured and murdered in front of her 11-month-old daughter after burglars tie up her husband at their home in Greece
- Burglars broke into family home in suburb of Athens early Tuesday morning
- They killed the family dog, tied up woman's 33-year-old husband, then went to attic where 20-year-old was sleeping alongside her daughter, 11 months
- Men tortured her to reveal location of valuables then strangled her, police say
- Husband eventually untied himself, found his wife's body and called police A British woman has been tortured and murdered in front of her 11-month-old daughter during a horror home invasion in Greece.
The 20-year-old - named locally as Caroline - was strangled to death at the home she shared with 33-year-old husband Babis Anagnostopoulos in the Glyka Nera suburb of Athens early Tuesday.
Police say three men broke into the family home around 5am while a fourth stood guard outside, tied up Babis - a helicopter pilot - then went to another room where Caroline was sleeping alongside their daughter.
The men tortured the woman to learn the location of the family's valuables then strangled her and fled - taking jewellery worth worth £21,500 and £13,000 in cash.
Caroline Crouch, 20 (right), has been strangled to death at her home in Athens, Greece, that she shared with husband Babis Anagnostopoulos (left) and their infant daughter (pictured)
Police say a gang of burglars broke into Caroline (left) and Babis's (right) home, tied him up, tortured and strangled her, then stole £33,000 in cash and jewellery and fled
Police sources told Greek news site Proto Thema that the raid began with the burglars strangling the family's dog - likely to stop it raising the alarm - and hanging its body from a fence post.
They then broke a downstairs window to get inside the property and went to one bedroom where they found Babis asleep.
The men - who were described as hooded and shouting in broken Greek - then went to an attic room where they found Caroline and her daughter.
The thieves tied up Caroline - who is thought to have been born in Greece but has a British passport - and then tortured her to get the location of the family's valuables.
According to the Ta Nea website, the robbers were armed and pointed a gun at the baby - at which point Caroline began screaming.
The robbers then strangled her in order to keep her quiet, the site reports.
Around 6am Babis managed to untie himself and went up to the attic, where he found Caroline's body next to the crying baby.
Caroline, who is thought to have been born Greece but has a British passport, began dating Babis in 2017, married him in 2019, and gave birth in June last year
Police have cordoned off the couple's home in the Glyka Nera neighbourhood of Greece and are scouring it for evidence
Officers believe the gang likely targeted the couple, and may have had them under surveillance before striking
He called police, who rushed to the scene. Babis and his daughter were taken to hospital, while officers began examining the house for evidence.
Social media profiles reveal Caroline and Babis met in 2017 and were married in July 2019 in a ceremony in Portugal.
Caroline, who appears to have ties to the UK through her father's side of the family, then gave birth to their first child in June last year.
The pair lived in Athens, where Babis worked as an 'air taxi' pilot flying out of Athens international airport and a smaller airfield in nearby Megara.
Caroline was a student at the University of Piraeus, according to Greek media, though it is unclear what she studied.
Police say it appears the robbers were experienced, and likely surveilled the couple for some time before the raid.
Investigators are now reviewing local CCTV cameras to see how the burglars got away and whether they were in the area before the raid.
They are also interviewing the couple's neighbours and friends to see if anyone gave away information about the pair keeping large amounts of cash in the house.
Police say hooded men broke into the home in the Glyka Nera suburb while one stood guard, strangled the family dog, tied up the husband, then tortured and strangled his wife
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