Mariam Soulakiotis

Infobox criminal name = Mariam Soulakiotis native_name = Μαριάμ Σουλακιώτη or Σουλακιώτου caption = Soulakiotis in 1951 birth_name = Marina Soulakiotou née Marina Soulakiotou,

During the time period of the crimes she was convicted of, Soulakiotis was neither a member of the mainstream Greek Orthodox Church nor in communion with the other, larger Old Calendarist group (the "Florinites")—she was a devoted follower of Archbishop Matthew Karpathakis of Vresthena, whom both groups consider a schismatic. after a large raid on her abbey which took place on 4 December 1950. As she died before all of her criminal trials were done, she was only technically found guilty of seven premeditated murders—as well as more than one hundred negligent homicides due to offering 'free' tuberculosis treatment that only consisted of staying at her monastery's high altitude locale, not medical therapy. Some modern Greek Old Calendarists on Matthew's side of the schism (but outside the convent) concur. and that she was born with the given name Marina After the adoption of the New Calendar by the GOC at the pan-orthodox Council of Constantinople in May 1923, Soulakiotis became an avid Old Calendarist and a follower of Bishop Matthew, now self-styled Archbishop Matthew of Vresthena, whom both the mainstream Greek Orthodox Church and even other Old Calendarists (self-styled true Orthodox Christians) consider to be in schism.

As a nun, Mariam was called Mother (and later Abbess) Mariam of Keratea. "assuming full responsibility for the monastery" when 'Archbishop' Matthew was aged 78. During this period of her life, she was described and photographed wearing an even more chaste version of the typical epimandylion, a Greek-style black epanokalimavkion worn by Church of Greece nuns of the highest rank (who cannot rise higher as they cannot become ordained priestesses), which entirely covered her forehead and eyebrows. Reuters reported that, at the time of her arrest, she had amassed three hundred homes and farms across the country in this way, along with "gold and jewels worth thousands of pounds".

Soulakiotis first came to the attention of police when an anonymous complaint was made by the daughter of a wealthy woman who had willed all her property to the monastery—she insisted that her mother wouldn't have done this without being forced, and accused the monastery's administration of "blackmail and threats". and her father, Christo Spyrides, called on the Greek embassy and authorities from Ohio to take action, claiming that his daughter was "lured" to the convent by a nun he identified as "Mariam Zaphriopoulos", who he said had been in the United States to collect property worth US$10,000 left to the monastery. However, the Associated Press reported that Spyrides was able to get into contact with his daughter after their initial reports, omitting whether or not she had been in the convent.

The prosecution further alleged that Soulakiotis' strict adherence to ascetic practices led to the unnecessary deaths of 150 people who had sought treatment, as the monastery was touted as a sanatorium for TB.

Arrest More than eighty-five police officers first raided the monastery's grounds on the night of 4 December 1950, accompanied by a deputy prosecutor, a judge, and a coroner, in an operation which lasted overnight. The following month, the Public Prosecutor further indicted Soulakiotis, along with thirteen other nuns and monks, on charges including homicide, fraud, forgery of wills, blackmail and torture, with Soulakiotis receiving the harshest indictment.

Defence arguments At trial, Soulakiotis' attorney, Panos Panayotakos, said in her defence that people surrender all their material property to monasteries when joining as a matter of course (a vow of poverty).

All told, Soulakiotis received three sentences at separate trials: one between 1951–52 and two in 1953, the last one ending mere months before her death. at her second, 10 years concurrently; and at her third, four additional years consecutively. Soulakiotis had more than 400 followers living in the monastery at the peak of her power.

As of 2022, the Old Calendarist monastery Soulakiotis once managed, Keratea's Panagia Pefkovounogiatrissa Monastery, remains open and still has members who believe she was innocent and who venerate her as a saint. it is unclear the degree to which Soulakiotis was involved in the negligent homicides she was convicted of in 1952.

Some modern English-speaking Matthewite writers, such as the priest Constantine Kouris, assert that Soulakiotis was innocent and unjustly tried. +Greek titleTransliterated titleTranslated titleDirector120""Kathartirio"Purgatory"226""I triti entoli"The Third Commandment"

In the horror drama series Grotesquerie on FX (2024 to present). In Season 1 Episode 2 one of the main characters (a Catholic nun) names Soulakiotis as their favorite serial killer and briefly tells her story.

In 2025, a film about the event was released called Sound of Silence. The film is considered gothic horror.