A man accused of the frenzied fatal stabbing of two women in their home almost five decades ago has spent his first night in an Australian prison cell.
Perry Kouroumblis, 65, was formally charged with two counts of murder and one count of rape over the infamous 50-year-old cold case “Easey Street murders”.
Suzanne Armstrong, 28, and Susan Bartlett, 27, were found dead with more than two dozen stab wounds at their Easey Street property in the inner-north Melbourne suburb of Collingwood, while Ms Armstrong’s 16-month-old son Gregory was left unharmed in his cot.
Detectives allege Kouroumblis murdered the pair between January 10 and January 13, 1977.
Kouroumblis also stands accused of raping Ms Armstrong during that time.
Kouroumblis fronted Melbourne Magistrates Court on Wednesday after arriving back in Australia on Tuesday night.
The accused murderer appeared bleary-eyed as he sat in the dock after being interviewed by Victorian detectives for several hours.
He was remanded in custody and will return to court in February for a committal mention hearing.
Kouroumblis has always maintained his innocence.
Outside court, Ms Armstrong’s sister Gayle told reporters she was ecstatic the accused had been charged and she could stare him down in court.
“I gave him a dirty look, if that helps,” she said.
She expressed her appreciation to detectives who worked tirelessly on the case for years.
Ms Bartlett’s brother Martin said the families were hoping for closure after almost 50 years.
The women, who were friends for most of their lives, went to school together at Benalla in Victoria’s north before moving into the Easey Street home after holidaying in Greece.
Kouroumblis, a dual Greek-Australian national, had been living in Greece since 2016, but a 20-year statute of limitation on the initiation of murder charges prevented him from being arrested.
He travelled to Italy and was arrested at Rome’s Leonardo Da Vinci Airport in September before being extradited to Australia.
Victoria Police Chief Commissioner Shane Patton has described the murders as “an absolutely gruesome, horrific, frenzied homicide” and one of Victoria’s “most serious” and longest cold cases.
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