5 charged in murder case of UC Berkeley professor, including his ex-wife, Greek police say
The professor and his ex-wife were reportedly in the middle of a child custody battle.
BERKELEY, Calif. -- Greek police have charged five people in the case of murdered UC Berkeley professor Przemyslaw Jeziorski, including his ex-wife and her current partner.
Jeziorski was shot multiple times at close range on July 4 while visiting Athens to see his children and attend a family custody hearing.
Four male suspects - one of whom is a minor - have confessed to their involvement in the killing, a Greek police source told CNN on Thursday. The police source added that the current boyfriend of the victim's ex-wife admitted to murder.
The boyfriend, whom police have not named, has been charged with premeditated murder, the Greek police press office told CNN. Three other unnamed male suspects, two Albanian nationals and a Bulgarian national, are facing accomplice charges, police said. It's unclear if any of the male suspects have attorneys.
Meanwhile, Jeziorski's ex-wife is facing moral accomplice charges, the police press office said.
The ex-wife, whom authorities have not publicly named, denies any involvement, her lawyer told CNN. Her lawyer also said that the four male suspects have confessed to their involvement in the murder.
All five of those arrested have been given until Monday to prepare a plea, police announced. The five people appeared in front of a prosecutor on Thursday morning, according to Greek national broadcaster ERT.
Jeziorski, 43, an economist and professor of marketing at UC Berkeley's Haas School of Business who went by the nickname Przemek or "PJ," was shot in broad daylight in a residential suburb of Athens and died at the scene, according to police.
A masked gunman "approached the victim on foot and opened fire from close range" at about 4:15 p.m., hitting the victim in the neck and chest, according to police spokesperson Konstantina Dimoglidou. Seven bullet casings from a 9mm caliber firearm were found at the scene, police said.
Eyewitnesses described seeing a masked man in black who approached the victim on foot, with one telling local media that she heard about six shots and saw the perpetrator run from the scene.
The shooting happened near the home of Jeziorski's ex-wife in the suburb of Agia Paraskevi, one day after the father-of-two attended a custody court hearing, police said.
Police said Jeziorski had no criminal record in Greece.
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Jeziorski's two young children are now in Greek protective custody, according to the victim's brother.
"Przemek's ten-year-old children, who are US and Polish citizens, are now under care in accordance with Greek child custody procedures," ukasz Jeziorski said in a statement. "Our primary concern is their safety and wellbeing, and helping them reconnect with their family to minimize the trauma they have already endured."
"Przemek loved his children and fought for them until the end. He paid the heaviest price, unnecessarily, for this," the family statement said. "This summer, he wanted to bring his children to his hometown of Gdynia, Poland. This death and the circumstances surrounding it remain impossible for us to accept, but we find some measure of comfort knowing that progress is being made toward justice, and that the kids are about to reunite with their family into a safe environment."
The victim's brother said, "Our family is heartbroken," but grateful to Greek police and security professionals who made the arrests. "We are also thankful for the help of the US Consulate in Athens, and the Polish Consulate in Athens, helping care for the well being of the kids," the statement added.
In addition to American and Polish citizenship, the children had applied for Greek citizenship and were awaiting a decision, according to the ex-wife's lawyer.
Jeziorski's family started a fundraiser to repatriate his remains to his native Poland and pay for legal representation in Greece.
UC Berkeley said in a statement that Jeziorski "had a passion for teaching" and during his 13 years there, he taught data analytics skills to more than 1,500 graduate and PhD students.
The dean of UC Berkeley's business school, Jenny Chatman, said she was "heartbroken" by the death of Jeziorski, who she described as a "beloved member of our marketing faculty."
The professor was also the co-founder of a start-up called Keybee, a short-term rental property management platform, along with his ex-wife.
Jeziorski filed for divorce in June 2021, according to California court documents.
