Fears grow for holidaymaker missing from Greek beach as search enters day 10
Her husband, Chris Bourda, 66, fell asleep on a sun lounger and woke to find she had disappeared. Her belongings, including her towel, remained on her sun lounger, but Michele was nowhere to be found - and is yet to be seen since, despite a massive land and sea search by Greek authorities.
Here's what we know about Michele's disappearance, 10 days on. Waiter 'laughed at husband' when he reported her missing
Chris continues his desperate search for his wife in Kavala, Greece. But on the day of her disappearance, he says he was laughed at by a waiter at a beachside restaurant when he asked him if he had seen Michele. He eventually persuaded a shopkeeper to help him and call the police, Mirror UK reports.
Chris, a pharmacist by profession, said: "Unfortunately I fell asleep and when I woke up she wasn't there... I went back to the waiter to say my wife was missing, have you seen her and he started laughing." Husband's frustration with 'slow' police investigation
Chris has criticised the Greek police for their apparent lack of urgency in searching for his wife - and claims he did not see a single police officer on the beach the day she disappeared.
He said: "The police didn't do anything on the day. One guest who was there that day said she didn't see any police and I didn't see any police that day either, not one single policeman at the beach. The only thing I saw was a police car driving up and down the road to the beach. Not getting out of the car, just looking in the direction of the sea." Michele Bourda
He also alleges that police waited days to review vital CCTV footage. Greek authorities, including the Hellenic Police and Coast Guard, say they have conducted extensive searches on land and at sea but found no trace. Last seen in swimsuit with yellow beach shoes
Michele, 59, is described as being 5ft 6in, of a slim build with blue eyes and shoulder-length hair. She was last seen wearing a rhinestone-embellished two-piece beaded swimsuit, yellow beach shoes and a pair of red horn-rimmed sunglasses. Woman matching her description 'seen swimming in deep water'
One witness recalled briefly speaking to a woman matching Michele's description swimming in deep water out at sea - while another claimed to have seen her walking away from the scene. Neither of these sightings have been confirmed. No evidence of foul play
Police say that while they have not ruled out any possibilities, there is no sign of foul play in their investigation.
On August 2, the day after she was reported missing to police, Greek charity LifeLine Hellas issued a Silver Alert - typically activated for vulnerable adults - warning the public that Michele's life may be at risk.
Anyone in Greece with information has been urged to contact the National SOS Line 1065. The British embassy in Athens confirmed they are supporting Michele's family and assisting local authorities.
Subscribe to our newsletter for the latest news from the Irish Mirror direct to your inbox: Sign up here.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Sunday World
a day ago
- Sunday World
Family of ‘gentle giant' missing in Greece appeal for help to find him
Aaron Fryer – who was described by his family as a 'soft-natured gentle giant' – had been travelling around Europe teaching English as a digital nomad The family of a Co Derry man abroad in Greece have described their worry, having not had contact with him in 10 days. Limavady man Aaron Fryer – who was described by his family as a 'soft-natured gentle giant' – had been travelling around Europe teaching English as a digital nomad. During his travels, the 28-year-old travelled from Serbia to the Greek city of Thessaloniki on July 30 and intended to stay there for a month. However, he was last heard from on August 5, prompting his aunt Debbie Caskey to contact police. Aaron Fryer News in 90 Seconds - August 15th Speaking to the Belfast Telegraph she said: 'There is a Facebook page for him up at the moment to help find him. 'We least heard from him 10 days ago, which is extremely out of character for him. His two best friends would talk to him every day, and so would I. 'Aaron is digital nomad, he travels around Europe and teaches English via a computer. He is six-foot-five, a gentle giant. He is just a lovely person, very kind, caring and soft natured. 'When we last spoke, we were probably talking about football and how work is going, how my day was going since we are out in Spain at the moment. 'I am very worried, his father is deceased, his mother is very concerned. 'He had come to Greece via Serbia, where he attended a Greek Orthodox church. I have contacted Greek police. 'It is just so out of character for him not to contact us, his phone just goes to voicemail, there is nothing on social media from him.' Aaron is described by his family as being six-foot-five with a strong stature. He has brown hair and may or may not have a beard, and he has no tattoos. "Police received a report on Saturday, 9th August that a man aged in his 20s was believed to be missing in Greece,' said a PSNI spokesperson. 'The matter has been referred to Greek authorities and our officers will assist with any enquiries that may be needed in Northern Ireland. We continue to liaise with the man's family.' Interpol have been contacted for comment.
Sunday World
2 days ago
- Sunday World
Man who faked death by claiming to be Irish orphan found guilty of rape
Under investigation for rape and credit card fraud, the man known in the US as Nicholas Rossi, faked his own death in 2020. A man who was accused of faking his own death by claiming to be an Irish orphan has been found guilty of rape in the United States. The man known in the US as Nicholas Rossi, whose legal name is Nicholas Alahverdian, is accused of sexually assaulting two women in Utah in 2008. He had fled to Scotland to escape justice but was extradited back to the US in January 2024 after a lengthy case in the Scottish courts. Rossi had denied all charges in the case relating to the Salt Lake County attack and it took the jurors of four men and four women more than eight hours to reach their verdict. He still faces another trial for an alleged rape in Utah County, which is scheduled for September. According to the BBC, Rossi, who had previously been joking with his legal team, showed no emotion as the verdict was read out. Nicholas Rossi News in 90 Seconds - August 14th The court had heard from the woman Rossi raped in Salt Lake County - referred to as MS, how they initially met online. They had begun dating and were engaged after two weeks but Rossi's behaviour soon changed, she said. He became controlling, borrowed money from her, would not let her drive her own car and criticised her clothing. When the woman tried to end the relationship, Rossi pushed her on the bed at his apartment and raped her. The defence claimed MS was resentful after losing money on the engagement rings. They argued that she only spoke of the rape allegation after seeing Rossi in the news 13 years later. The court then heard from the woman Rossi is accused of raping at his apartment in Orem, Utah County. Appearing as a witness in the current case, the woman, referred to as KP said she met Rossi on social networking site MySpace in August 2008, when she was 21. They began a short relationship but soon found out he had used her credit card details without permission to buy a computer. After the relationship ended, he admitted he did not have the money to pay her back. He then began performing a sex act on himself and when she tried to leave, Rossi pulled her clothing down before raping her. Nicholas Rossi leaving Edinburgh Sheriff and Justice of the Peace Court Under investigation for rape and credit card fraud, he faked his own death in 2020 and fled the US in attempt to escape justice. Authorities suspected he was somewhere in the UK. That same year, Rossi married his wife Miranda in Bristol. He came to the attention of authorities when he was identified at Queen Elizabeth University Hospital in Glasgow in December 2021 while being treated for Covid-19 under the name Arthur Knight. He created this alias under the guise of being 'an Irish orphan' before his true identity was uncovered by police. He was arrested after being identified by his distinctive tattoos as a person the US authorities wanted to extradite, but claimed this was a case of mistaken identity. Months of court proceedings in Edinburgh followed but in November 2022, Sheriff Norman McFadyen determined the man claiming to be Knight was indeed Rossi. An extradition hearing took place in June 2023, with Sheriff McFadyen ruling there was no barrier to Rossi's extradition. In his Scottish hearings, Rossi would appear in a wheelchair and sometimes with an oxygen mask. An extradition warrant was signed in September 2023 and Rossi was finally sent to the US in January 2024. Prosecutors in the US say they have identified at least a dozen aliases Rossi used over the years to evade capture. Rossi grew up in foster homes in Rhode Island and had returned to the state before allegedly faking his death. An obituary published online claimed he died on February 29 2020 of late-stage non-Hodgkin lymphoma. State police, along with Rossi's former lawyer and a former foster family, cast doubt on whether he was dead. A year later, hospital staff in Scotland recognised his tattoos from an Interpol notice and alerted authorities. He was extradited to Utah in January 2024. 'This case is like an old puzzle from the thrift store,' said MacKenzie Potter, one of Rossi's lawyers. 'It's 13 years old, not all the pieces are there, some pieces are from a different puzzle. And when you start going through everything, you're not going to get a complete picture.' Prosecutors pushed back, saying that if any 'puzzle pieces' are missing, it is because Rossi's lawyers fought to have some evidence dismissed.
The Irish Sun
3 days ago
- The Irish Sun
My gangster gran Big Mags went from paedo-hunter hero to public enemy after secret £1K-a-day heroin empire exposed
Her granddaughter speaks for the first time in a new podcast and offers surprising new insight on the mum-of-eight GRAN PLAN My gangster gran Big Mags went from paedo-hunter hero to public enemy after secret £1K-a-day heroin empire exposed SHE was the Scottish grandmother dubbed a local hero after galvanising a group of locals into protesting about re-homing a convicted child sex offender on their housing estate in Stirling. Straight-talking Margaret Haney, seen by many as a campaigning voice for the common person, shot to fame after appearing on the popular BBC daytime chat show Kilroy in the late 90s. Advertisement 13 Scottish grandmother Margaret Haney, aka Big Mags, was dubbed a local hero after galvanising a group of locals into protesting about re-homing a convicted child sex offender on their housing estate in Stirling Credit: Newsflash 13 Big Mags appeared on popular BBC daytime chat show Kilroy in the late 90s Credit: BBC 13 The extraordinary story of this larger-than-life woman is told in a new podcast Credit: BBC In her early 50s and known as 'Big Mags', she cut an unlikely heroic figure with her short blonde hair, chunky earrings and plain T-shirt and leggings. But behind her 'anti-paedophile campaigner' image was a very different woman. For Big Mags was also the matriarch of a criminal family, who made hundreds of thousands of pounds from drug dealing. Dubbed the 'Family from Hell', they terrorised the neighbourhood with a string of thefts and violence across Stirling before fed up locals turned on her - ironically driving her out using the mob protest tactics she'd become famous for. Advertisement The extraordinary story of this larger-than-life woman is told in a new BBC Sounds podcast Crime Next Door: The Ballad of Big Mags, in which her granddaughter Cassie Donald speaks for the first time. Cassie - whose mum Diane was described as a 'lynch-pin' of the drug dealing operation - believes Mags's legacy is more complex than was portrayed in the media. "Two things can be true at one time," she says. "You can be a drug dealer who has sold drugs that have potentially killed people, but you can also still be a loving grandmother and a good person.' Advertisement During the 1980s Mags had eight children - seven of whom have been in jail or in custody. Mags too had her own convictions – assault, breach of the peace, contempt of court and fraud. Man, 29, arrested after woman, 21, 'stabbed' outside Scots pub 13 Parents conducting a peaceful vigil outside the hostel for the homeless in Stirling where convicted paedophile Alan Christie was staying Credit: Alamy 13 Mags was instrumental in getting Christie forced out of the area Credit: Jim Stewart Advertisement She and her kids lived on the Raploch housing estate, with various grandchildren, nephews and nieces scattered across the complex. In late 1996, 12 schools close to the Raploch received a leaked confidential note that a paedophile was living in the area, in accommodation provided by the council. Furious Mags led a protest, mainly of women, outside the accommodation, demanding he be removed. When the man, Alan Christie, was taken away for his own safety, the people of Raploch celebrated their victory. Advertisement TV news and newspapers were hooked on this down-to-earth grandmother and she revelled in it Myles Bonnar 'As for Big Mags, this was only the beginning,' says presenter Myles Bonnar. 'The vigilante mob leader was now a woman on a mission. 'TV news and newspapers were hooked on this down-to-earth grandmother and she revelled in it.' Cassie recalls: 'I'm not going to say she didn't love the attention, because she did. Advertisement 'They all tell funny stories about that time. If I remember correctly, one of them said she had a child's karaoke machine with a mic and would use it to rally the local community to get involved in the protest.' 'Keeping courts in business' 13 Mags led a protest, mainly of women, demanding the child sex offender be removed from their estate Credit: Newsflash 13 On August 25, 1997, a crowd started to gather outside Mags' flat, which grew 400-strong Credit: James Stewart But Mags would soon regret stepping into the limelight. Advertisement Many on the estate knew the other side to Big Mags, and were appalled that she was being feted as a campaigning hero. Angry letters started being sent to newspapers, with one stating: 'Only a few months ago I was reading about her criminal family keeping the courts in business. 'Now she's appearing as a community spokesperson on a chat show.' Another raged: 'The majority of people living in Raploch are disgusted by the publicity given to Big Mags Haney. Advertisement 'She and her followers are just the minority in our community. Please don't give her any more publicity.' Mark McGivern, chief reporter at the Daily Record, recalls: 'The amount of crimes committed in Stirling by that family was legion.' In the podcast Caroline Dunbar tells of her family's nightmare while living in a flat below Mags. They came in through the window and stole the television that my dad got me four months before, for my birthday Caroline Dunbar 'It was just unreal. My mum couldn't sleep at night with them banging doors and windows and walking up and down the stairs every night,' she says. Advertisement 'They actually went into my room and stole my television. My window was open a bit and I was in the living room with my mum, my dad and my brother and a couple of my pals. 'They came in through the window and stole the television that my dad got me four months before, for my birthday.' She also claims she was on the receiving end of threats - including that they would throw eggs at her wedding car. Things turned even scarier when, in 1994, Mags' 16-year-old granddaughter Kim stood on a wheelie bin and set light to Caroline's curtains through an open window. Advertisement The fire destroyed one room and covered the rest of the flat in soot. The council put Caroline and her family into bed and breakfast accommodation and they never returned. 'We were too scared to go back,' she says. Oddly, Mags turned her own granddaughter in over this incident, taking her to the police station. Advertisement 'Family from Hell' 13 Mags was forced to move to temporary accommodation on Upper Bridge Street in Stirling after being hounded out of her home Credit: Alan MacGregor Ewing - The Sun Glasgow 13 The crowd chanted for the Haneys to get out, singing, 'Build a bonfire and put the Haneys on the top' (pictured: Mags responds to the protest) Credit: James Stewart One case in May 1995, on the face of it quite minor, would launch the Haneys from local court reporting to national notoriety. Mags's 20-year-old son, Jo Jo Haney, was in court where he received a 60-day prison sentence for planning a theft at a hotel. Advertisement The Sherriff that day remarked during the sentencing: 'What troubles me is the misery that this particular family has inflicted on the Raploch community over many, many years. 'If I were the presiding Sherriff here, I'd be taking very severe steps to make sure that this particular family are deterred from any further offending.' To his astonishment, Mags told Mr McGivern outside the court: 'I don't know what he's complaining about. It's my family that keeps him in a job.' The story was widely reported the following day, and the clan was now on the newspapers' radar as 'The Family from Hell'. Advertisement A petition sprung up demanding that the council remove the Haney family from the estate, attracting hundreds of signatures. On August 25, 1997, a crowd started to gather outside Mags' flat, which grew 400-strong. They began chanting for the Haneys to get out, singing: 'Build a bonfire and put the Haneys on the top.' I don't know what he's complaining about. It's my family that keeps him in a job Big Mags Mags was taken away under police escort, giving everyone the finger as she left. Advertisement She would never return to the estate. Her reign within the Raploch was over. But she was far from finished. Settling nearby in Lower Bridge Street, Stirling, Mags' drug dealing became very lucrative as she moved on to heroin. Mr McGivern began quietly investigating, posing as a dealer to buy drugs from her family of distributors, and eventually ran a story on his newspaper's front page with a picture of Big Mags, headlined: 'Dealer Number One.' Sgt Simon McLean of the Serious Crime Squad worked undercover as a local in the community for three weeks, building a case against her. Advertisement 'We got the lowdown on what was happening from pubs and clubs and all the rest of it,' he says. £1,000-a-day heroin empire 13 Mags was arrested in 2001 after police raided her home in Stirling Credit: Newsflash Bit by bit, people began to open up, and Mags was arrested in 2001. At her trial the court was told she would often earn up to a thousand pounds a day from her drugs operation - while claiming £1,200 a month in state benefits. Advertisement With a week of the trial still to go, the four main family players pleaded guilty to supplying heroin on a large scale over a number of years. Mags got 12 years, daughter Diane - Cassie's mother - got nine, cousin Roseanne seven and Mags' son Hugh five years. Despite these convictions, local residents and journalists remained puzzled as to why it took so long to dismantle the Haney drug operation, allegedly rampant throughout the 1990s. Asked why their drug operation wasn't shut down sooner, Sgt McLean is in no doubt. Advertisement There is no doubt that Mags Haney was a criminal informer Sgt Simon McLean 'It was because of her relationship with the police,' he says. 'I've dealt with many very serious criminals and I've never known a successful one, who has made a life of it, that hasn't been talking to and informing the police, at some level. 'There is no doubt that Mags Haney was a criminal informer.' After a few months in prison Mags was diagnosed with cervical cancer, and later developed lung cancer. Advertisement She served six years before being released in 2009. She died in August 2013 aged 70. The full series of the Crime Next Door: The Ballad of Big Mags podcast is available on BBC Sounds now. 13 Mags served six years before being released in 2009 (pictured in 2012) Credit: Daily Record/Media Scotland 13 Big Mags died in August 2013, aged 70 Credit: James Stewart Advertisement
