What happened to Roula Pantou? This is the question that has remained unanswered for 14 years in Ioannina. The 40-year-old, a mother and active member of the local community, disappeared mysteriously in July 2011, leaving behind a huge void and a series of unanswered questions.

The Prosecutor of the Ioannina Prosecutor’s Office, following information in recent weeks, withdrew the criminal charge of manslaughter with intent filed by the sister and father of the missing woman and activated the investigation.

The family’s attorney, Dimitris Boukas, filed a number of additional motions and pointed out specific individuals to testify. These persons spoke on Friday night on the show “Light in the Tunnel.”

“I did well and…”

The show featured a witness who described an incident that happened in 2013 or 2014 – after Roula Pantou disappeared – at a chip shop, when a man told him “what do you want with women… They are only suffering and trouble” and then “as if he forgot who he was talking to, he flew away: “I did well what I did…”.”

Frodzu’s little forest and the wild fight

Another witness described the heated confrontations between Roula Pantou and her estranged husband in a forest near the Frodzou Theatre in Ioannina.

“I’m sure. I had seen them arguing intensely. They were near the fountain, where there is a rock in the middle of the path… I knew them personally. Their fights were well-known in the neighborhood. It was nothing new. But that time I was marked by the tension.

 

“Unfortunately, I can’t remember exactly what period the incident happened, after all it’s been so many years since Roula was lost. There, trails are leading into the forest and some isolated areas, quite far from the main road. I’m sure it’s this couple because I knew them personally. We had heard several things about the tension that existed and especially about the way they treated each other,” the witness said.

The estranged husband

For his part, Roula Pando’s estranged husband denied that he had ever been there with the 40-year-old. “With my wife, I have not been here. I used to come alone or with other relatives, but much later … I don’t remember a tap or a rock. That doesn’t say anything…”

Asked about the details of the witness’s description, he said, “In the woods, I did not come with Rula. I was coming alone and passing by the spot here outside the tavern. It’s been years since I last came, but it was definitely after her disappearanc.e”

“I’ve never been here with Rula before. It’s not true what they say. What would I come here to do. I have never raised my hand to anyone myself nor have I ever argued vigorously with Rula in this little wood. I was away at the time and I didn’t even see her because she had a restraining order against me. I don’t remember if it was only about our daughter or not going near her at all. All I know is that she had our daughter sign it too. As soon as she did that I went and rented a house. I didn’t have much contact. She would just call me and tell me if I wanted to come back to the house. One day she would say this way, the next day she would say that way,” he also said.

Roula’s daughter’s embarrassed reaction

The missing woman’s daughter, Elena, also spoke to the publication, recalling events from the days after the disappearance.

“My father and I threw away the covers and the sofa. They were worn out. I remember there being tension in the house, shouting… even beatings. From my father to my mother. It was hard to live in that…”

But when her father intervened, saying “I lived elsewhere. I wasn’t even at home. We didn’t throw them together. Maybe she threw them up on her own out of nerves. It wouldn’t be the first time…”, the girl began to have doubts: “You mean I threw them away by myself? Probably… Maybe I put them on the deck. I don’t remember exactly…”

Contradictory testimonies

The father denies his daughter and denies any abuse of her missing mother and husband.

“I only reacted once, when she came at me with a piece of glass. I have not raised my hand to anyone. She was the aggressor, not me.”