At noon on Tuesday, the well-known coach, George Papanaum was found dead inside the gym he kept, in a case that initially appeared to be a suicide, but is now being investigated by the Homicide Department.
The man who ran a gym in eastern Thessaloniki claimed in his last message to acquaintances that he was driven to this act as he was deceived by a woman with whom he allegedly had sexual relations. George Panaoum said that this woman had extorted approximately half a million euros from him, leading him to financial ruin, and referred to various other illegalities that she had revealed to him.
At the same time, the 50-year-old man made reference in his note, to a ring that carried out extortion of businessmen and even murders, as well as a ring that exploited underage girls.
In his message, George Panaum describes the woman in question and notes that he trusted her so much that she managed to extort all his money. As he writes, one day before his birthday, the woman disappeared and stopped all communication with him. What he says about the encouragement of this woman to her daughter, in order for the young girl to participate in various parties where children of wealthy families would be present, is also creepy.
Friends and acquaintances say goodbye to him "Thanks for being you"
Already acquaintances and friends have been leaving flowers and notes outside the place where he breathed his last breath since last night, wanting in this way to honor the memory of the gymnast. A short while ago, some of his acquaintances rushed to the spot and lit candles, with sadness painted on their faces.
Among the notes, one stands out which reads: See you in person. Thank you for being you!
Due to the content of the note and the dimensions of the news of his death, the Head of the Prosecutor's Office of the Thessaloniki District Court ordered the case to be investigated by the Department of Crimes against Life of the Thessaloniki Security Directorate. According to the same information, it will be investigated whether there are moral perpetrators behind his suicide, while a prosecutor's investigation has been ordered into the circumstances of his death.
His last message "shows" a woman who at first he trusted her and believed her to be "good-natured" but eventually managed to extort from him, initially, 90,000 euros and then another 400,000 euros, resulting in the loss of his entire property. In fact, one day before his birthday, the woman in question disappeared and stopped all communication with him.
"I apologize to God, to my spiritual director for upsetting him and to all those who love me, to all the athletes," his post allegedly concludes.
What people who knew him say
The news of his death exploded like a "bomb" in the neighborhood of Thessaloniki and people involved in gymnastics and sports and no one can believe that a man who was permanently with a smile on his lips ended his life. People who have known him for decades told protothema.gr that George Papanaum was a father of three children and had never mentioned to them that he was facing any serious problem, beyond "minor problems" of everyday life.
"What he kept telling those who went to his gym to work out and instructing them was that he intended to work out people's smiles first and then their bodies. We can't believe that George left in this way, we all loved him," a neighbour told protothema.gr. "We saw him very often but he never talked to us about problems that were bothering him," he noted.
Source: protothema.gr
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