Greece charges Japan diplomat with killing daughter

Athens: Greek prosecutors have charged a former Japanese ambassador to the Vatican and his wife with the murder of their 36-year-old daughter, police officials said on Monday.

The 77-year-old former diplomat, Masami Tanida, and his Greek wife, 65, were arrested on Saturday after police discovered the body of their daughter in the bathroom at their home on the island of Evia, said the officials.

The couple deny the murder charge and say their daughter committed suicide, their lawyer Thanassis Tartis said.

A coroner's report found the woman had been strangled to death and her wrist slit to make it appear that she took her own life, said the police officials, who asked not to be identified.

The couple have admitted to rowing with their daughter about the upbringing of their grandchild, police said.

Authorities were alerted after the diplomat's wife appeared at a local hospital on Saturday requesting a death certificate for their daughter, who was only reported missing on Thursday.

Police later searched their home and found the body, the police officials said.