Vicky’s home was open to anyone who needed her. Then she was killed on her doorstep

Vicky Apostolopoulos lit up every room she entered. She was always smiling and eager to help, and her door was open to anyone who needed her.

“She was just so wholesome and just honest with everything, and always positive,” a friend said. “Every time she saw someone, there was nothing other than her being positive.

“Every time anyone wanted anything, she said, ‘Come over, I’ll make you something to eat, and we’ll talk about it.’

“She was just always that type of person who wanted to support everyone as much as she could.”

Police allege Apostolopoulos’ neighbour, 47-year-old Milorad Zaric, murdered her in her Bayswater home on Saturday morning.

Along with Apostolopoulos’ two teenage sons, Zaric’s 17-year-old son was in the house and witnessed the alleged fatal stabbing.

Zaric’s son sustained minor cuts in the incident.

Apostolopoulos, 51, doted on her two sons. Every decision she made revolved around how she could make them happier and bring joy to their lives, said her friend, who did not want to be named.

“Her Christmas trees were beautiful every year,” the friend said. “She always made a big fuss for her kids’ birthdays.

“She was such a family person, just invested in her kids, her nephews, everyone around her. She was always present at everything.”

Another family friend, who also wished to remain anonymous, said Apostolopoulos “loved her kids more than love itself”.

“Vicky was the best woman. A positive, kind gentle soul,” the family friend said.

“Everyone loves Vicky. Vicky will be missed terribly.”

Apostolopoulos made an impression on her colleagues at Australia Post in Bayswater, where she last worked about a year ago. She kept in touch after she left.

One former colleague said Apostolopoulos’ death was “absolutely heartbreaking”.

“Such a tragic loss of an absolutely beautiful lady,” the former colleague said.

On Saturday, Senior Sergeant Chris Ellway said the neighbours were known to each other but were not in a relationship, and Apostolopoulos’ death was not being treated as a family violence incident.

He said the exact circumstances were still being investigated, but police believed the woman was attacked after opening her door to the alleged offender.

“We’re still piecing together everything that’s happened, but it appears as though the [alleged] offender has gone to the victim’s house, and she’s opened the door, and then she’s been assaulted and subsequently died from her injuries,” Ellway said.

Pezhman Mohtari said he was renovating a house nearby in Cousin Drive when he saw a boy screaming and running across the road.

He said a man came out of a house and grabbed the teenage boy, dragging him back inside.

“I was really shocked, and then the police came and I heard about [the woman inside],” Mohtari said.

Zaric appeared at Melbourne Magistrates’ Court on Sunday, charged with murder. He was remanded in custody to face court again in February.

For those who knew Apostolopoulos, her death was a shocking loss.

“You just can’t imagine how it could happen to such a normal family,” her friend said.

With Sherryn Groch

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