Steven Cook was 20 and on his first trip abroad without his parents when he disappeared in the resort of Malia in 2005. His remains were found at the bottom of a well in 2017
A man has been charged with murdering a Brit tourist who disappeared on a night out with friends while on holiday in Greece 20 years ago.
Steven Cook, from Sandbach in Cheshire, was 20 and on his first trip abroad without his parents when he disappeared in the resort of Malia in Crete on September 1, 2005. His remains were eventually found by workmen at the bottom of a well in 2017, but since then there had been no further developments in the case.
Cheshire Police say they are in contact with the Greek authorities after being made aware of new information. It comes after Crete based lawyer Ioannis Kostantoudakis, who represented Steven’s family when his body was found, revealed last month that the ex-wife of another British tourist had contacted police.
She claimed her 38-year-old ex had admitted killing Steven in a rant while on drugs after his body was found. She said her former partner claimed he had gotten into a fight with another young man in Malia while drunk and the victim died after being hit on the head. The woman also claimed he ex then threw the body in a well after the alleged fight.
Mr Cook’s older brother Chris, 50, said the family were told the news just days after the 20th anniversary of his death and it raised complicated emotions.
He said: “Whatever we throw into it, we won’t get any sense of justice. There might be a legal sense of justice, as in somebody is found innocent or guilty. But I don’t think anything can pay back and compensate for everything that’s happened to us as a family and what we’ve been through over the past 20 years.”
He said this year’s anniversary had also been the first his family had to endure without either of his parents, who both died in the past couple of years.
An investigating judge in Greece has referred the case to the Mixed Jury Court of Heraklion, where a hearing will take place on October 21.
Mr Kostantoudakis said under Greek law the case could be tried without the suspect being physically present, although the court could also order his presence if it felt necessary which would spark an extradition request to the UK authorities.
Cheshire Police said it was aware of “developments” in Mr Cook’s case including that a murder charge had been filed, and that officers had provided information to their Greek counterparts.
The force said: “At this time, we are working closely with the Greek authorities and Steven’s family who are being supported by specialist officers.”
Remembering his brother, Mr Cook recalled how one of his last memories was going to the 2005 Champions League final to watch Liverpool play AC Milan, a match the team won on penalties after a famous 3-3 clash.
He said: “All of us have absolutely fantastic memories because he was just such a lovely guy. There was no bad bone in his body, he was a really, really good kid and he was well loved by all of his friends, people at uni and just not the kind of person you’d ever imagine getting into a situation where something like that could happen.”