Busted patio doors, a disabled security camera, and an empty Monopoly box: New photos have revealed the 'crime scene' that Babis Anagnostopoulos staged after killing wife Caroline Crouch as he tried to convince cops they were robbed.
The 33-year-old told police that a gang of masked raiders had broken the doors and disabled the camera before making their way upstairs to where the couple were sleeping before demanding cash that was kept in the Monopoly box.
But Anagnostopoulos now admits this was all a fiction, cooked up after he smothered Caroline to death himself in a desperate attempt to hide his guilt so he could keep raising their infant daughter - who witnessed the murder.
The scene was revealed as Anagnostopoulos appeared in court Tuesday for his first hearing since being charged with Caroline's murder - giving a self-pitying apology in which he talked about ruining his own life while asking to be allowed out on bail so he can go back to his child.
In an attempt to explain the killing, he also revealed that Caroline had suffered a miscarriage before their daughter was born - something he blamed for a 'change in her behaviour' which made her 'aggressive' and ultimately led him to kill her.
'I really regret this act, I ruined my life and my family,' he told the judge. 'I wish I could go back in time, but unfortunately I cannot.'
The living room of the house where Caroline Crouch was killed, including 'clues' planted by husband Babis Anagnostopoulos as he tried to convince police they had been burgled
A CCTV camera which Babis said masked raiders had disabled is seen on the floor, with police now saying he disabled it himself in evidence he planned Caroline's killing
A Monopoly box where Babis claimed to have been hiding a large amount of cash which the burglars wanted, but which police now say never existed
Anagnostopoulos is currently facing life in jail for Caroline's murder along with three lesser charges including the death of the couple's Husky puppy Roxy, which he drowned as part of his elaborate cover-up.
He does not dispute that he is responsible for Caroline's death, but says she was killed in the heat of an argument and that he should be given a reduced sentence.
Prosecutors say the killing was premeditated - pointing to a CCTV camera which they say Anagnostopoulos disabled hours before the killing and smartwatch data that suggests Caroline was asleep when she was smothered as evidence.
Speaking about the moment he smothered Caroline in court yesterday, Anagnostopoulos described it as a 'hug' - saying she was trying move away from him as they lay in bed so he held her tight.
'At one point, as her face was shaking on the pillow, I mean her mouth and her nose were resting on the pillow, I kept holding her in my arms until she stopped rocking,' he said, according to Greek news site Protothema.
'It all lasted about five minutes from the time I hugged her until the moment she stopped rocking. I tried to wake her, rocked her, but it was in vain. Then I realized what had happened.'
He also recounted the story of his relationship with Caroline, saying he met her on the island of Alonissos where she had lived since childhood and where his parents owned a holiday home and which he visited as
