The mystery of the disappearance of fashion designer Dimitris Mao
Not long ago, a rumor began circulating online about the largely forgotten “Mao” case. It was whispered that the killer had finally been found and it was only a matter of time before he revealed where he had concealed the body of the ill-fated 49-year-old. Of course, it quickly became apparent that this was either a misunderstanding or a fabrication. Nevertheless, it reignited interest in the unsolved mystery surrounding the disappearance of fashion designer Dmitri Mao. But how many people actually remember his case? To the current generation, who were mere infants at the time, his name means nothing.
Let’s start from the beginning. In the late 1990s, on the cusp of a new century, Greece was in a state of cultural, economic, and social disarray, fueled by many people’s delusions of soaring prosperity and euphoria. This led to a relentless and extravagant party scene, depicted in lifestyle magazines, while television inundated viewers with frivolous entertainment. Just days after the 1999 Easter celebrations, a news story shook this carefree atmosphere: a prominent fashion designer had vanished, with strong indications that his murder was linked to his sexuality. Dimitris Mao was openly gay and a well-known figure in the Kolonaki social scene. The shock deepened as days passed and police were unable to find his body.
Even after all these years, we can’t say with certainty whether the police handled the case appropriately. The fact that they knew where the young suspect frequented, and that Mao had managed to tell a friend that the young man had rented a loft above a grocery store on St. Meletius street, yet no substantial leads were ever found, leaves many questions unanswered.
Dimitri Mao was born in 1951 in Burundi, Central Africa, and tragically lost his Cypriot-born father when he was just six months old. His mother returned to Greece with Dimitris and his older brother, Alexandros. Five years later, she remarried and, along with her new husband, her two children, and a third son born in 1957, they lived happily in a charming house in Pefki. From a young age, Dimitris showed an interest in the arts and started taking classical dance lessons, which he continued in London. However, a series of injuries led him to abandon his ballet career at the age of 22 and return to Greece. Inspired by the emerging fashion trends of the 70s and young designers such as Montana, Migler, and Gauthier, Dimitris aspired to introduce a groundbreaking fashion style to Athens, creating a clothing brand that would offer something completely new to the Greek public.
He rose to prominence alongside other post-independence era designers such as Billy Bo, Aslani, Polatov, and others.
The first boutique to bear his name—often mistaken for a pseudonym—was a quaint little shop on Patriarch Joachim street. His shirt dresses crafted from Swiss fabrics made quite an impression, and his menswear followed a similarly minimalist aesthetic. This initial success and visibility led him to open a shop in Mykonos in 1980, which he ran for two years alongside fashion editor Takis Tsantilis. At the time, Mykonos was an alternative tourist hotspot popular among the gay community, where light, revealing clothing was a part of the summer allure. Mao’s name started to circulate more frequently, with women’s and youth magazines featuring him, and a fashion show in “Great Britain”—featuring Greek-Italian actress Valeria Golino as one of the models—cemented his success.
In 1982, the store relocated to Pindarou Street, marked by a large mirror bearing the brand’s name next to the window, a concept conceived by set designer Vassilis Fotopoulos. However, Mao’s attention to the changing fashion market led him to transform the boutique into a Café Tabac. It became a popular spot for espresso coffee—one of the first in Athens—and a market for tobacco and cigars. From 1990 to 1996, it was a popular stop for pedestrians looking for a cup of coffee. But then, jewelry designer Minas Spyridis was offered the opportunity to manage his workshop in Nea Ionia. In Easter 1999, everyone in Mykonos was awaiting Dimitris Mao’s arrival for the opening of his new shop. He never showed up and there was no word from him in the following days, which prompted his wife Minas Spyridis and friend, Tzini, to contact the police. The investigation yielded no results. Twenty-six years on, his disappearance remains a mystery. Until tangible evidence is found, he cannot be officially declared dead, only “missing”. His trail has completely vanished.
The gay lifestyle during the era of lifestyle press was marked by two main characteristics. Hidden paths on one side and emerging identities on the other, but not as we understand them today; rather, within the context of a burgeoning cosmopolitanism. Magazines were already discussing the gay community, yet not in the contemporary sense of activism. Instead, they focused more on the “liberated” lifestyles of gay men in other societies and the AIDS crisis. The term LGBT+ hadn’t even been coined yet.
Dimitri Mao, who had spent some time living in England, was part of the first post-AKOG era, influenced by both affluence and the socially liberal views of the PASOK era. A regular at the gay bars of Kolonaki and Omonia, Mao was a successful, strikingly handsome young man. Standing tall at 1.87 meters, he was elegant, cultured, and sexually active. He followed his instincts in his romantic pursuits, which were chaotic, multi-ethnic, and polyamorous. His friends often warned him to be more cautious about meeting fleeting lovers. One such instance was when he met a 22-year-old Kurdish-Iraqi man during his walks just before Easter in 1999.
The last person to see Mao was his close friend, Takis Tsantilis, who drove him to his ill-fated rendezvous with the young man. The meeting was scheduled for Good Friday evening, after the Epitaph, at the Everest in Agios Meletios. Tsantilis recalls dropping Mao off at the meeting spot. Mao pointed out his date, but Tsantilis never got a good look at him. Mao’s plan was to visit his friend, actor Minas Konstantinopoulos, in Aegina the next day, and then head to Mykonos. However, he never made it to either place.
During the three-day holiday, Holy Saturday, Easter Sunday, and Easter Monday, 1,500,000 drachmas were withdrawn from his bank account in small amounts from a branch of a large bank in Syntagma, which had no security camera. The most plausible theory is that multiple culprits forced Mao to reveal his card pin, then killed him and disposed of his body. Dimitri Mao was never found.
After all these years, we can’t be sure whether the police conducted a thorough investigation. They knew where the young suspect frequented, and Mao had even told a friend that the young man had rented a loft above a St. Meletius grocery store. However, no substantial information was ever found, leaving many questions unanswered. The missing designer’s close friend, Ms. Mari Giannakopoulou fondly remembers, “He was a wonderful man, and my family held him in high regard. Dimitris was a sweet, handsome, and talented individual. Despite being a workaholic, he wasn’t interested in casual flings, unlike some others we knew in the gay community. Sadly, he was prone to taking risks in his romantic relationships. Yet, he was also a sociable person who never missed out on theatre shows, movies, and other social events. I found out about his disappearance through an announcement on Angeliki Nikolouli’s show. He was absolutely thrilled to be working at Minas, as it freed him from the stress of running his own business. However, his end was tragically undignified.”
In Giannakopoulou’s opinion, the subsequent Nikolouli show was a grave mistake. It was initiated by a well-known detective of the time who had been hired by Dimitri Mao’s relatives. Despite the hefty fee, the detective’s work only resulted in the case being aired on TV. This could have alerted the culprits, making them aware of the gravity of the case and the potential risk due to Mao’s fame. However, without any concrete evidence, we can’t determine whether the Greek police were invested in investigating the potential murder of a gay man. After all, this isn’t the only case that remains unresolved.
His half-brother, Yannis Fengoudakis, recounts, “My brother lived in an apartment on Dervenia Street in Exarchia. The prosecutor investigated his apartment after his disappearance but found nothing suspicious. There were brioches and red eggs on the table, which he had presumably bought to take with him to Aegina. Three months later, the landlord’s attorney, without notifying us, removed the police tape and entered the apartment. We should have intervened sooner. Valuable items such as the stereo, an expensive TV, personal belongings, and our mother’s jewelry that she had left behind a few years prior, all disappeared. We never found out what happened to them. Seven years later, when we officially declared him missing, we discovered that due to unpaid rent for the first quarter, the landlord had mortgaged two of my brother’s properties on Hermou Street. These were properties he had bought with the intention of merging them into a single residence. If it weren’t for us, the landlord would have profited from this. My brother and I grew up in the same house. While I can’t accuse the police of negligence, the process was far from efficient. We were repeatedly summoned to the morgue to identify bodies that bore no resemblance to the description we had given of my brother. Moreover, neither my older brother Alekos nor I were asked for DNA samples, as if we were expected to be around indefinitely. Alekos passed away a year and a half ago. If my brother’s remains are found, whose DNA will they use for comparison if I’m no longer here? The case has been left unresolved, and we were often fed incredible nonsense.
I took it upon myself to appear on Nicolouli’s show. His friends and some individuals who claimed to have seen him were also present. People are prone to fabrication, often spouting whatever comes to mind. It’s like the recent leak. I hired a lawyer to inquire with the GAA, but unsurprisingly, there was no information because the leak was baseless. Besides, it was a criminal act – they stole the money, implying that Dimitris didn’t flee to the mountains. He vanished. The last time I saw him was on Maundy Thursday in 1999. He was supposed to go to Aegina and Mykonos for Easter. He never made it. It’s a tragic situation.”
It’s been many years since Dimitri Mao’s disappearance, and the chances of finding any evidence now are slim. However, we still hope for a breakthrough, as without any confirmation of his death, his family can’t even hold a memorial service for him.