Man arrested in Italy over 1977 Australian double murders

Sydney : A man has been arrested in Italy over the 1977 murders of two women in Melbourne, Australian Police have confirmed.

Police in the state of Victoria on Saturday said the 65-year-old man, a Greek-Australian dual citizen, who was the subject of an arrest warrant, was apprehended at a Rome airport on Thursday.

Victoria Police said in a statement that they will seek an extradition order for his return to Melbourne as part of the decade-long investigation into the murders of housemates Suzanne Armstrong, 27, and Susan Bartlett, 28, who were found dead at their home in inner city Melbourne on January 13, 1977, Xinhua news agency reported.

Both women, who were last seen alive on January 10, had been stabbed multiple times.

Armstrong's 16-month-old son was found in another room distressed and dehydrated but otherwise unharmed.

Known as the 'Easey Street murders', the case became one of Australia's most high-profile cold cases.

"The Easey Street murders, as they came to be known, have always been a priority for Victoria Police and an enormous amount of work has been done by many, many people to bring us to the position we are in today," Victoria Police Chief Commissioner Shane Patton said in a statement.

"While we still have some way to go, this arrest is an important breakthrough."

The police in 2017 offered a 1 million Australian dollar ($680,802) reward for anyone who had new information that could lead to an arrest and conviction.

The Victoria Police on Saturday again called for anyone with information about the murders to come forward.