Artemida: Numerous questions over translator’s disappearance – “She did not leave by her own choice”

The husband of missing Chinese translator Yu Ting, who has been missing since May 20 from the Artemida area, expressed his conviction that she did not disappear by her own choice.

Speaking on SKAI on Tuesday afternoon, Vasilis Karavasilis said he does not know what happened to his wife after the appointment she had arranged in Athens to rent apartments, while stressing that he cannot steer the authorities’ investigation in any particular direction.

“I am convinced that my wife did not leave willingly,” he said characteristically.

As he explained, Yu Ting left on May 20 for a professional appointment in Athens. “She went out for some appointments at 4 (p.m.) (editor’s note: on May 20) regarding some apartments in Athens. I do not know what happened during midday in the centre of Athens; I cannot direct the authorities anywhere. She had her passport with her. She usually carried a photocopy of it, but when she went to public services, she had the passport,” he said.

Her husband also said that the 40-year-old translator did not usually carry large amounts of money with her. “There was no chance she would be carrying a lot of money, at most she would have had up to €1,000, which she would immediately deposit in a bank,” he stated.

At the same time, he noted that there were no indications of problems in their relationship or of any personal dispute. “There was no harassment, argument or anything similar that I knew of. Whatever professional or other problems she had, we always discussed them; there were no secrets between us.”

The translator’s disappearance was reported after 20 days

Vasilis Karavasilis was also asked to respond to the fact that, while the last communication with his wife took place on May 20, the missing person report was filed on June 10.

As he explained, he initially believed that Yu Ting had travelled outside Athens for professional reasons, as she had made similar trips in the past.

“My assessment was that she was outside Athens for some work. She did not usually do that, she had done it once or twice,” he said, adding that “she had gone to Czechoslovakia and France for work.”

Regarding his wife’s final appointment on May 20, he clarified that it concerned an apartment in Athens. “The property manager had contacted her because he could not find the Chinese owner, who was in China, and they had to open the house to see what was happening with the plumbing.”

Describing the days following her disappearance, Mr Karavasilis said he initially tried to contact her through messages.

“The last time we communicated was on the morning of May 20, Greece time, when she sent me some documents. I tried to communicate with her through messages until the 25th of the month and then I tried to reach her by phone. Because of my work, I often do not have mobile phone signal.”

He said that when he returned to Greece on June 15, he had already asked his brother to go to their home. “I returned to Greece on June 15. On June 10, I sent my brother to the house to see what was happening; the phone showed that it had no signal.”

According to him, the missing person report was eventually filed by his brother. “The report to the police was made by my brother on June 10, when he saw the situation at the house. At the Spata Police Station, they were not willing to accept a missing person report, thinking that she had gone on holiday or taken the money.”

As he added, 48 hours later the report was filed at the Syntagma Police Station, while he himself gave a statement to the authorities after returning to Greece. “I went and gave my statement to the police on the afternoon of June 15, and on June 16 I informed the Chinese authorities.”