‘I gave him a dirty look’: Alleged Easey Street killer in court as victims’ family members watch on

Almost 50 years after the alleged murder of her sister, Gayle Armstrong sat in a courtroom with the man accused of the Easey Street killings.

There, she glared at the alleged murderer – an unkempt 65-year-old Perry Kouroumblis, who stared straight ahead.

“I gave him a dirty look,” she said.

Fresh off a plane after extradition from Italy, Kouroumblis sat between two security guards during his first appearance at Melbourne Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday afternoon.

He has been charged with two counts of murder and one count of rape over the 1977 deaths of Collingwood housemates Suzanne Armstrong, 27, and Susan Bartlett, 28.

“[I felt] half ecstatic, very scared, and very appreciative to our detectives who have worked so hard these last few years,” Gayle Armstrong said on the court steps after the hearing.

Perry Kouroumblis arrives at Melbourne Magistrate’s Court.Credit: Jason South

“Those detectives have just done a miracle job.”

Kouroumblis, who was aged 17 when Armstrong and Bartlett were found stabbed to death in their home almost 50 years ago, maintains his innocence.

Court documents released to the media for the first time show Kouroumblis is accused of murdering the two women sometime between January 10 and January 13, 1977.

He is also charged with the rape – or “carnal knowledge” – of Armstrong.

The accused man covered his face with a black leather jacket as he was driven into the court complex by senior homicide squad detectives. He entered the dock at 3.23pm sporting a bushy grey beard and wearing a dark-coloured, collared jumper.

Gayle Armstrong and Martin Bartlett – the brother of Susan Bartlett – sat in the front row of the court for the brief hearing, alongside the detectives handling the case.

Those officers included Detective Sergeant Paul Rowe, who sat with Kouroumblis on his flight back to Australia.

Kouroumblis, a dual citizen of Australia and Greece, was extradited from Italy, landing at Melbourne Airport at 11.32pm on Tuesday after a two-leg flight from Rome, while under police guard.

Susan Bartlett (top) and Suzanne Armstrong were killed in their Easey Street, Collingwood, home in 1977.Credit:

He had been held in Rome’s Regina Coeli jail since September 19 after being detained at Leonardo da Vinci Airport under an Interpol red notice.

The Easey Street cold case burst back into the headlines in September when Italian authorities arrested Kouroumblis upon his arrival on a flight from Greece. Within days, he agreed to be extradited to Australia, marking a major milestone for Victoria Police in one of their highest-priority cases.

At the time of the killings, the accused man lived just a few hundred metres away from the Easey Street house where the bodies were discovered alongside Armstrong’s unharmed 16-month-old son.

Kouroumblis (left) is led by police off an extradition flight from Rome before his court appearance in Melbourne.Credit: Nine News

Police previously revealed that Bartlett’s body was found near the front door with 55 stab wounds. In a bedroom was her housemate, Armstrong, who had allegedly been raped and stabbed more than 20 times.

Kouroumblis – who had been living in Athens – could not be extradited from Greece as under that country’s laws charges must be laid within 20 years of an alleged offence. Attempts through diplomatic channels to have him returned to Melbourne failed, and he was put on an international watch list– leading to his arrest in Rome.

He did not contest his extradition following his arrest and only requested to be able to speak with his brothers while he was detained.

Police offered a $1 million reward in 2017 to catch whoever was responsible for the killings.

Martin Bartlett and Gayle Armstrong, siblings of the two slain women, outside court.Credit: Jason South

On Wednesday magistrate Leon Fluxman ordered Kouroumblis, represented by defence lawyer Bill Doogue, to return to court in February.

“I’m adjourning your matter until the 26th of February, 2025. That’s for a committal mention in this court. That’s an administrative hearing at which stage your lawyer will make a potential cross-examination application for witnesses,” Fluxman said.

“A brief [of evidence] will be served on your lawyer on or before the 15th of January, 2025.

“I note there are no custody management issues. There can be no application for bail in this court.”

Outside court, Bartlett’s brother Martin recalled that the two women had grown up together in Benalla and attended the same high school before moving to Melbourne to share a house.

He said the two families were hopeful of closure after almost 50 years.

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