Carlos Mavroleon lived until the end a life as he chose it, to the extremes, full of adventure and danger. Born in 1958 in London, the scion of a wealthy shipping family, his roots can be traced to the island of Casso and extend to Mexico, his mother's country of origin. A restless spirit from a young age, he began his revolution while still studying at Eton College to end up fighting the Soviets in Afghanistan alongside the Mujahideen and the Taliban.
OF DIMITRA PALIGIANNI
SOURCE:makthes.gr
A fortune of over 100m was renounced. pounds along with the comfort and wealth of his family. From his teenage years he still wanted to achieve his own things. So, at 16, he leaves his home for the first time, hitchhikes across Europe and Turkey and boards a ship bound for exotic India. The germ of exploration into the unknown had just begun to take root within him. There he worked as a simple laborer in the factories, but he wanted to deal with the ruby smuggling that was "blooming" in the area at that time. For 2 whole years his family thought he was dead, but he returned to the family home in England as if nothing had happened and continued his studies at school, succeeding in being admitted to Harvard University.
From worldly life to the ranks of the Mujahideen
For the next few years Carlos Mavroleon's life could be said to be typical for someone with money and connections with the big names of the jet-set, in fact he works as a stockbroker on Wall Street, but it seems that his turbulent spirit it cannot be limited to molds. On a trip to New York he comes into contact with Afghan separatists. This fact caused him to leave again, in 1985.
This time he is heading to Afghanistan, which has been at war with the former Soviet Union since 1979. The passion of "Greek Che", as many gave him this nickname, led him to convert to Islam and join the Mujahideen rebels. He is trained in the use of weapons, learns the Pashtun language and for the next few years until the end of the hostilities, he lives as an Afghan and fights in the wild landscapes of Afghanistan the Red Army on the side of the rebels with the name "Karimullah", according to information from the British Guardian.
The return to the war zone as a correspondent and the surprise ending
His return from the battlefield marked a new beginning for Carlos, but not quite different from the previous one. Danger seems to be his elixir. He decides to become a war correspondent and thus returns back to the war zone to record the events. Rumors are swirling about this decision, as they want the American secret service CIA to approach him, due to the acquaintances and easy access that Mavroleon had acquired over the years in Afghanistan.
Since 1991 when he started his new career at the American network CBS, he has been an eyewitness to tragic incidents of bloodshed in Somalia, Rwanda, Iran, once again putting his life in danger. In August 1998, on behalf of the 60minutes show, he was assigned a mission to Pakistan to find and interview the notorious Osama Bin Laden, long before he became world famous for the terrorist attacks in the USA.
On August 23, Mavroleon arrives in the city of Peshawar, Pakistan, a city that borders Afghanistan, and begins his mission. Two days later, however, while trying to approach a camp on the Afghan side, he is arrested by Pakistani secret agents on suspicion of espionage, but is released.
On August 27, 1998, a few 24 hours after his adventure and while his producer does not find any sign of the journalist's life, he will be found dead in his hotel room from a drug overdose, as reported by the local authorities and the medical examiner. The tragic news exploded like a bomb in the family and professional circle and a veil of mystery covered his death with suspicions of murderous act hovering.
Four days later in Athens, his funeral is held under a close circle. He left with a quiet "goodbye" even though he did not choose to live a quiet life. The turbulent life of Carlos Mavroleon attracted the interest of many researchers and journalists who wanted to unfold its risky aspects, while the release of a film entitled "Black Lion" is expected, which will focus on his last moments.