Panayiotou exclusive: his family speaks out about Jayde
For the first time the family of convicted killer Christopher Panayiotou speak of the toll the murder and trial have taken on them
THERE was a time when the two families were close and would regularly spend time together. But no longer. Not after everything that has happened. And on this final day in Courtroom A of the high court in Port Elizabeth the rift widens even further – because for the one family it’s justice at long last while for the other it’s a devastating blow that brings their whole world crashing down.
As Judge Dayalin Chetty passes sentence whistles and cheers erupt from the third row of the courtroom. It was exactly what the Inggs family had been desperate to hear.
After all the legal wrangling and manoeuvring it’s all over for their son-in- law, Christopher Panayiotou (31). Having been found guilty of murdering their beloved daughter, Jayde, he’s just been handed the toughest sentence possible: life behind bars.
The gruesome murder of Jayde Panayiotou in April 2015 made headlines countrywide. The 27-year-old teacher was abducted outside her home in the Stellen Glen neighbourhood of Port Elizabeth. Her body was found two days later in an open field near Uitenhage.
Panayiotou was arrested the day after her funeral and charged with planning the murder and hiring three people to execute it.
But now after almost three years the Inggses’ daughter can finally rest in peace.
It’s a welcome relief and yet while the family celebrate they glance over at the Panayiotou family – these are people they once welcomed into their home for happy gatherings.
On a bench in the front Panayiotou’s mother, Fanoula, is crying softly. Her husband, Costa, puts his arms around her, drawing her close to comfort her.
WHILE Costa (65) manages to keep it together in court, a few hours later he breaks down as he talks to us in the offices of the family’s attorney. Overcome with emotion, his shoulders start shaking and he bows his head, taking off his glasses to wipe away tears.
He vividly remembers the day he saw his daughter-in-law’s body in the open field, a bullet wound to the head. It still distresses him. He recalls how he and Jayde’s father, Derrick Inggs, stood crying together next to the body. Both men had lost a daughter that day.
Then, in a heavy Greek accent, Costa says, “I know my son. My son would never do something like this. I know he didn’t do it.”
With us at the table are the rest of Panayiotou’s family: Fanoula (55) and his two younger sisters, Chloe (28) and Kalleope (25). The sisters look uncannily like Jayde.
The day before sentencing, Kalleope took the witness stand in a final, desperate bid to persuade Judge Chetty not to
give her brother a life sentence. As tears ran down her cheeks she begged for mercy, saying there was much more to her brother than what had been seen in the media. In a letter She read out in court she said it wasn’t not only the Inggs family that were suffering, but that her family were also struggling to deal with the events.
She said her brother and Jayde had been together for more than 10 years and the Panayiotous have wonderful, happy memories of Jayde. “We feel the void her death has left and we miss her dearly,” Kalleope said.
The Panayiotous have remained silent throughout the protracted trial – until now as they open their hearts to YOU.
“We didn’t want any attention,” Fanoula says. “We didn’t want to get back at anybody or lash out on social media,” she says, tearing up. “No matter how much others think we didn’t love Jayde, they were all wrong. We lost a daughter too – and now we’ve lost a son.”
The Panayiotous and their legal team received many threats during the trial, says Terry Price, the family’s advocate. “We get messages from people saying each of the Panayiotous should be hanged or that each of them should be dragged behind a car.”
The family was also widely criticised for showing no emotion in court, Chloe adds. She and Jayde were close – they taught and coached hockey at the same school.
“Do you know how it feels when you sit there and in the background you can hear people making all sorts of comments and clapping hands, and you’re experiencing emotions as well. But we can’t react. Because whether you look down or up or cry, you’re still judged,” she says.
“We were also called part of the Mafia because we wore black to court,” Fanoula adds. “But that’s part of our religion as Orthodox Greeks. We wear black when we mourn. Do you understand now why we kept quiet all this time?”
IT’S been one long nightmare since Jayde’s murder, the family says. The day she disappeared Panayiotou called them all to ask if they’d seen Jayde. When they realised she was missing Costa, Fanoula and Chloe joined the search. “Christopher was anxious, nervous, scared. Every hour that went by we hoped we’d find her. The later it got, every hour that went by it was getting darker, and we knew the chances were slimmer,” Fanoula recalls.
When asked about the day the body was found all four of the Panayiotous are immediately overcome with emotion.
“You can’t explain how we felt. It’s a moment I’ll never forget. It was so traumatising,” Chloe says. “Even now it feels unreal to think she’s gone.”
“No, you can’t explain it . . .” Costa says softly, as if to himself.
After Jayde’s death media reports surfaced of Panayiotou’s long-standing affair with Chanelle Coutts (29), who worked in a shop owned by his family.
“We never knew of any problems in the marriage,” Costa insists. “I’d heard a rumour before about the affair and I asked Christopher about it. He denied it. He said, ‘Dad, I love Jayde’.”
They found out about the relationship along with the rest of the country – in the newspapers.
“At that stage Jayde, who was like a sister to us, had just been murdered and our brother had been charged with her murder. We decided to focus on that rather than the affair,” Chloe says.
Even after his conviction and all the evidence presented in court, his family still believe in Panayiotou’s innocence and are planning to appeal the conviction.
He’s doing okay under the circumstances, the family’s lawyer, Alwyn Griebenow, says. “He might not show any emotion in court but as soon as he leaves the courtroom he’s completely different. He’s trying to be strong for his parents’ sake because he knows how hard it must be for them.”
We’re about to leave when Costa says, “My son told me several times that he had nothing to do with Jayde’s murder. And I believe him. So they can clap hands all they like, and laugh. I know my son.”
‘Do you know how it feels when you sit there . . . whether you look down or up or cry, you’re still judged