The Athens Court announced today the final verdict against Albanian citizen Eduard Danaj, 52 years old, who was found guilty of the premeditated murder of his wife, Enkelejda Danaj, 40 years old, an event that occurred on May 16, 2024 in Menidi, Athens. According to the verdict of the trial panel, Danaj was sentenced to life imprisonment, as well as an additional five years in prison and a fine of 5,000 euros for illegal possession and use of a weapon of crime. The court characterized the act as a deliberate murder, with particular cruelty and committed under the influence of jealousy and a sense of ownership towards his wife.
After committing the crime, the defendant left the scene and stayed at a hotel in Athens, where he was arrested a few hours later. During his arrest, he told the police officer who accompanied him: “I did good to her.”
"An act of extraordinary violence and cruelty"
During the announcement of the verdict, the presiding judge emphasized that: “The act of murder is an act of extraordinary violence and cruelty. We have a knife stuck in the victim’s stomach. The defendant is a violent and apathetic man; he did not even remember the dates of birth of his children, which is inconceivable. He acted with premeditation and complete calm.”
The court rejected the defense's claims that Danaj had been under the influence of alcohol during the act of murder, clarifying that he had consumed alcohol after the crime and not before it.
The tragic event
According to the court file, on the morning of May 16, 2024, the 52-year-old builder went to Enkelejda's apartment, as she was on her way to work. He attacked her with a knife, stabbing her more than 14 times, and she died at the scene from her injuries.
The girl's shocking testimony
In the courtroom, the couple's 22-year-old daughter, who has taken over the care of her younger brother since the murder, testified in shock, never having looked her father in the eye. "I only spoke to him once. He apologized to me, but then he started cursing my mother. He has never regretted what he did," she said.
She confessed that domestic violence had been repeated over the years, indicating that her mother often came to school with scratches and wounds on her body.
"He beat her all the time. He was jealous and controlled her every move. He would say, 'I'll kill you, we'll be together in life or death.'"
The girl recalled that her parents divorced when she was 14 years old, but then her mother took her back home after he underwent treatment for alcoholism.
"I didn't want him to come back. I was afraid the same thing would happen. And it did."
In her testimony, she added that their father had stalked and threatened them even after the separation, calling them and following their movements.
Enkelejda's brother also testified at the trial, describing a long account of the violence inflicted by Danaj.
"He considered my sister his property. There were always arguments. Once he put her head in lime. We lived close to protect her. We often found the children hiding behind the sofas." According to him, Enkeleda had decided to reunite with him for the sake of the children, but the violence had immediately resumed.
“This man was evil his whole life. He didn't want to see anyone move forward. It wasn't the drinking that was to blame, it was his nature. He had told his sister many times: 'If we get divorced, I'll kill you.'”
Defendant's defense
During his speech in court, Eduard Danaj stated that he loved his wife very much and that he did not remember anything from the day of the crime, claiming that he had been drunk.
"I loved her very much. I don't understand how it happened. After two days I said 'what have I done?'. I don't know how I killed my wife," he said calmly.
He admitted that he had had frequent arguments with his wife, but denied that he had ever hit her before. The court and the prosecution did not accept this claim, recalling that in 2013 he had threatened Enkelejda with a knife and had been reported for domestic violence.
The prosecutor's last words
In her speech, the prosecutor in the case emphasized that the defendant had acted with full knowledge and intent to kill his wife.
"His motive was jealousy and a sense of ownership. He could not accept that she had started a new life. The murder was premeditated and committed calmly, not in a disturbed state of mind or under the influence of alcohol," the prosecutor stated, seeking the maximum sentence.
The court fully accepted her request, finding Eduard Danaj guilty of premeditated murder, illegal possession and use of a weapon, and sentencing him to life imprisonment.
This decision closes one of the most shocking cases of domestic violence recorded in Greece in recent years — a crime that destroyed a family and left two children without a mother.
