Dimitri Pappas

Caines spoke with Cayman Net News on 9 January 2007 and gave the latest development on the investigation.

“The inquest for the Dimitri Pappas case is set for 23 January 2007. It will be held in open court,” he said.

With the controversy that has surrounded Dimitri’s death, 23 January is therefore set to receive significant international attention.

This is because high-profile human rights attorney and wife of British prime minister, Tony Blair, Cherie Booth Blair, was recently confirmed as lead lawyer for a highly controversial, re-opened case in Bermuda -- the Rebecca Middleton murder.

Dimitri’s body was discovered hanging in the clothes closet of a hotel room in Smiths parish in Bermuda on 20 July 2005.

Since that time, the Pappas family and a wide circle of his friends have cried foul play and murder in the death of their 37-year-old loved one.

However, in stark contrast, the Bermuda police – only some four weeks after the death – placed a label of ‘suicide’ on the case.

Speaking with Cayman Net News a month after the incident, Caines had said, “Mr Pappas’ body was taken to the King Edward Memorial Hospital where an autopsy was subsequently conducted and we are now in possession of that pathology report.

“The report does not indicate that foul play was a contributing factor in the death.”

The Pappas family have railed against this view – making reference to many circumstances surrounding the death.

Some of the contradictory factors to which Jack Pappas and Sue Kongsli – Dimitri’s parents – have pointed included, firstly, closet space that was less in height than Dimitri’s 5 feet 11 inches.

Another was the question surrounding how Dimitri could hang himself when, only some three weeks prior, he had broken his arm – an injury that would still have at least another three weeks to go for healing.

The original receipt for CI$519.20 from a medical centre in the Cayman Islands for treatment of the arm was shown to Net News.

Additionally, Dimitri’s parents and friends find it hard to match a depressed, suicidal state of mind with the person they knew, who had appointments – made only on Monday 18 and Tuesday 19 – with friends here in Cayman for 21 and 22 July.

For the deceased’s father, Jack Pappas, these factors “showed his state of mind; they showed that he was forward thinking and planning, which is how he usually is.”

For Dimitri’s family, lack of communication from the Bermuda Police; a controversial set of crime scene photos; Dimitri’s amorous relationship with a female member of the Bermuda Police who was with him up to the night before his death, but who was not forthcoming after his death; what the Pappas describe as the frequent change of officers assigned to the case; and, inexplicable delays in the date for the inquest are other disturbing factors.

At the time of Dimitri’s death, Net News sources had said an inquest date could have been set for some seven months after.

In 2005, Caines did not give a month in which the investigations would end and findings handed over to the Coroner, but he said, “The Coroner has the latitude to address the Pappas matter in a time convenient with his schedule.”

Speaking with Cayman Net News on Tuesday 3 January 2006 – more than a year ago – about when the findings would be revealed, Caines had said, “The file as it relates to the death of Mr Pappas is in the final review stages and will be forwarded to the Coroner on completion.”

When this statement from Caines is positioned against one he made on 23 August, when he said, “An investigation into the circumstances surrounding the death of thirty-seven-year-old Peter Dimitri Pappas is near completion. The file when completed will be sent to the Coroner. After that the Coroner will decide whether an inquest will be held,” question signs multiply.

A year ago, an attorney-at-law in Cayman asked, “If the case was as straightforward as they said it was, what is taking so long?

“Why has it been delayed to the point where a move to a Coroner’s Inquest, that could have been spoken about in mid 2005, is now nowhere in sight?”

Last year, Mrs Kongsli said she felt “justice delayed is justice denied.”

She also said that only one BPS officer was fairly communicative on her son’s case, however, he was not of the rank to be able to give her the final answers she needs.

Another member of the legal fraternity in Cayman went further and said that if the Pappas family is dissatisfied with the pace of the process, they can compel a Coroner’s hearing and should view that as remedy-in-waiting to be used.

This attorney also said, based on the “circumstances surrounding this case”, a delay of this kind, at this time, should have the public “very concerned.”

For many in the legal fraternity, it is significant that just now when the public is set to hear Bermuda’s officialdom voice its take on a case that has been highly controversial, Bermuda’s Chief Justice, Richard Ground, has given leave for the Middleton case to be re-opened in April 2007 – based on a previously highly controversial verdict.

Within weeks after Dimitri’s death, that case was being compared to the Rebecca Middleton case.

Dr Carol Shuman – who is associated with the Rebecca Middleton Foundation – spoke with Net News and confirmed this.

Miss Middleton, 17, of Canada, visiting Bermuda with her best friend, Jasmine Meens, was murdered July 3, 1996 at Ferry Reach, a remote location in Bermuda.

She was stabbed, tortured, raped and murdered after accepting a ride with two men, who agreed they would take her home because taxis did not keep their promise to pick up the girls. Another man carried Jasmine home safely.

Two local men were arrested nine days after Rebecca was killed.

The Attorney General at the time – Elliott Mottley – accepted a story of “consensual sex” from Kirk Mundy, 20, one of the accused, despite Rebecca having been cut and stabbed at least 35 times.

Asked to comment on the connection between the Middleton case and the Dimitiri Pappas case, one Bermuda official told Net News, “I can’t comment on the Pappas case.

“But the Middleton case was handled shockingly.

“Forensically it wasn’t handled right, and now Bermuda is paying a serious price for that.”

Dimitri’s father told Net News on 9 January that he has “no hopes of Bermuda saying anything different from they have said before on Dimitri’s case.

“But I still say they did not do a good job with the crime scene and there are too many question signs.

“If I had not called repeatedly before Christmas, we would not have known that an inquest date had been set.”

One Bermuda official has said that so far, there is “no indication that the findings handed down on the 23rd of January will be different from what the BPS has said thus far.”