Anastasia Panagi, 15 confessed to planning and carrying out the murder of her best friend Anna Diamantidou in June 26
The chronicle of the case
June 25, 13:45 : The two girls have a big fight for an unknown reason and Anastasia Panagi decides to kill her best friend.
June 25, 21:08: A camera footage from a Super Market in Veroia shows the murderer and the victim driving away in a red Yamaha motorbike that belonged to Anastasia , from Anna’s home.
June 25, 22:42: The same camera footage shows Panagi ALONE , entering a parking lot with her motorbike.
June 26, 03:21: Anna’s mom is worried about her daughter not having returned home yet. The young girl never answers her calls. The anxious woman calls Anastasia Panagi, who tells her that she hasn’t seen her best friend since schools closed for summer in June 15. Trusting her daughter’s friend , Vassiliki ends the call and calls the police to report Anna’s disappearance. 24 hours later, Anna still hasn’t returned home and an AMBER ALERT is issued for her.
June 27, AFTERNOON: Police finds Anna’s body in a remote area 3 kilometers away from Veroia. The body is half buried in the rocky ground. The victim’s parents proceed to the crime scene and identify the body as their daughter’s.
June 28 , 09:50: Autopsy results reveal 43 stab wounds in Anna’s chest and stomach and it is stated that the murder occured around 21:30-22:20 in June 26. No DNA is found in the body.
June 28, 18:30: Police interrogates Anastasia Panagi. At the beginning, they believes the 15year old to know something that may lead them to Anna’s murder. However, her trembling voice and her changing statements make them realize she has something to do with the crime . However, Mirka Papadopoulou, the police Chief, believes that Panagi is acting like that because she is devastated from losing her friend , so they let the 15year old return to her home. After seeing the surveillance cameras footage showing Anastasia with Anna and after alone and the time of the murder matching the times the camera showed, Veroia Police issues a search warrant for Panagi’s home. The young teenager is announced as the main suspect for Diamantidou’s murder.
June 28, 21:30: Police arrives at the Panagi house and informs her parents about the situation. They are upset and let the officers see the camera footage of their home. The cameras show Panagi in the kitchen , washing a bloody knife at 00:21 and putting her red clothes in the washing machine. After searching Anastasia’s room, they find the knife used for the murder and Anna’s DNA on it. Panagi’s parents tell the police that their daughter is out with friends and the officers rush to the restaurant where Anastasia js eating with friends.
June 28, 22:30: Anastasia Panagi is arrested in “Kelari” restaurant in Veroia. Arriving in the police station, she confesses to the murder of Anna Diamantidou. When asked why she did that to her best friend, Panagi states “I was afraid she would expose my secrets”
Panagi is pre- jailed and is going to appear in Veroia’s courts in October 2023 . She is charged with 1st degree murder and facing a sentence up to 30 years in prison.