Third burglar charged in fatal robbery

HOKE COUNTY Authorities have charged 20-year-old Oseas Santiago Jr. of Fayetteville, along with 20-year-old Richard David Perez of Fayetteville and 17-year-old Justin Ryan Vasquez of Raeford, in connection with 31-year-old Nicolas Bekiaris' death.

Authorities say Bekiaris was shot in the upper body area during the home invasion and later died from his injuries.

It happened at a house on Somerset Drive in the Somerset Subdivision near Fort Bragg Monday afternoon.

Bekiaris' fiancee, Eva Hatzianoglou, says she dropped him off at her home, while she went to get a prescription filled.

Authorities say the three suspects kicked in the front door of the home after they saw the family leave, but were caught off guard when they saw Bekiaris inside.

They say Bekiaris was in the bathroom when he heard the door kicked in. He got out and ran into a front bedroom, looked out the window, called 911, then hid in a closet. When he heard one of the suspects come up the stairs going room to room, he sneaked out and got behind the suspect. The men struggled and the gunman came up the stairs and started shooting.

"He really did the best he could," Peterkin said. "The unfortunate thing was they shot an unarmed man. He was not armed. He was fighting. He was trying to apprehend them."

Authorities say during the confrontation, Santiago was accidentally shot by one of his accomplices. He was taken to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. He was later charged when he was released from the hospital.

Deputies haven't identified the gunman, but Hatzianoglou says Vasquez was friends with her son and nephew and a frequent guest in her home.

"I mean how can you bring a gun into a house where you ate .. and you spent the night," she said. "We are going to move, we cannot stay here."

All three suspects have been charged with first-degree murder, felonious breaking and entering and felony conspiracy. They are currently in jail under no bond.

Bekiaris' funeral is scheduled for Saturday in Raeford.

Hatzianoglou says she hopes to one day take some of his ashes back to Greece with her.

"He was a good guy and he did not deserve to go for nothing," she said.

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