Safety · Chania
Tenant confesses to murder of Stavroula Leventaki, leads police to rural burial site near Chania
A 43-year-old North Macedonian tenant has admitted to killing Stavroula Leventaki, a 45-year-old woman missing since late May in Chania, Crete, and directed authorities to a rural grave about five kilometres from her home.
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In brief
The 43-year-old tenant from North Macedonia admitted to killing Stavroula Leventaki and pointed police to a rural burial site 5 km from her home.
Blood stains found on the floor and TV in the tenant's house were matched to the victim, with additional samples from a mop and his van under analysis.
A security camera recorded the victim entering his home on 30 May but never exiting; the suspect was filmed entering and leaving the house multiple times.
Investigators are examining a possible sexual motive, believing the suspect may have approached the woman romantically and the situation escalated.
- 30 MayStavroula Leventaki last seen entering the tenant's house; her mobile phone switches off 15 minutes later.
- 19 JunTenant arrested on Friday night for drug possession; named prime suspect in the disappearance.
- 20 JunSuspect appears before prosecutor, maintains innocence and claims threats from victim's brother.
- 21 JunSuspect confesses to the murder and guides police to a burial site approximately 5 km from the victim's home.
Confession ends weeks-long search
A 43-year-old man from North Macedonia, who rented a property from Stavroula Leventaki, confessed on Saturday 21 June to murdering the 45-year-old and guided police to an agricultural area roughly five kilometres from her house where he had buried her body. The confession came after days of denials, contradictory statements, and mounting forensic evidence linking him to the crime.
“My life is in danger. I am the tenant of Stavroula Leventaki. A hooded man with a gun came to my house and threatened me to say nothing, because he wanted to scare Stavroula about property matters.”
Blood evidence and surveillance footage
Investigators from the Chania Crime Investigation Sub-Directorate had focused on the tenant from the start, considering a sexual motive after excluding other scenarios. Laboratory analyses confirmed that bloodstains found on the floor and television in his house matched the DNA of the missing woman. Further blood traces on a mop and inside his professional van were also detected, with final results pending; authorities planned to issue a homicide arrest warrant once those were confirmed. Security camera footage from a neighbouring property recorded the victim entering the tenant's home on 30 May but never leaving, while the suspect was caught on the same cameras making multiple trips in and out after claiming he hadn't left the house that evening.
“It's his last card to try to escape. Our properties were always clearly divided.”
From arrest to admission
The tenant was arrested on Friday 19 June for cannabis possession, 13 seedlings were found, and brought before a prosecutor on Saturday under heavy security. During the previous days he had given three statements, each containing significant contradictions, and then disappeared for about 36 hours, telling a television programme he feared for his life and accusing the victim's brother of sending an armed man. The brother firmly rejected those claims. After a night-long interrogation, the suspect finally confessed and led officers to the grave site; the recovery of the body and a full reconstruction of the events are now underway.
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Sources and context
- ΣΚΑΪΘρίλερ στα Χανιά: Ομολόγησε τη δολοφονία της 45χρονης Σταυρούλας ο 43χρονος
- iefimerida.grΕξαφάνιση Σταυρούλας Λεβεντάκη στα Χανιά: Αρνείται ότι εμπλέκεται ο 43χρονος ενοικιαστής, συνεχίζεται το θρίλερ
- ΣΚΑΪΧανιά: Οι Αρχές εξετάζουν σεξουαλικό κίνητρο στην εξαφάνιση της Σταυρούλας
- NewsITΕξαφάνιση Σταυρούλας Λεβεντάκη: Επιμένει στην αθωότητά του ο ενοικιαστής - Τα σεξουαλικά κίνητρα, οι αντιφάσεις και τα ίχνη αίματος
- Stavroula Leventaki
- 45-year-old victim, missing since late May 2026; her disappearance is now a murder investigation.
- 43-year-old North Macedonian tenant
- Suspect; tenant of the victim, arrested on drug charges, confessed to her murder on 21 June 2026.
- Places
- Chania
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