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Greek police have solved the murder of a 38-year-old British national whose body was found inside a suitcase in an abandoned building in Athens’ Kypseli district in July.
A 26-year-old Afghan national has been identified and charged with homicide, robbery, and weapons offences. The suspect is reported to have confessed to some of his actions to Greek authorities.
After the woman’s body was found, the case was taken over by the Department of Crimes against Life and Personal Freedom, part of the Sub-Directorate for the Investigation of Crimes against Life and Property within the Directorate for Combating Organised Crime (DAOE).
In the initial phase of the investigation, specialist officers from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations conducted an on-site examination and biological testing of the body.
Despite the advanced state of decomposition and difficult environmental conditions, they were able to recover usable fingerprints from the victim.
A request for information was sent through the Interpol Division of the Directorate of International Police Cooperation at the Hellenic Police Headquarters.
In response, US authorities confirmed that the fingerprints belonged to a 38-year-old British national.
Investigators established that the victim, identified in media reports as Elisabeth-Jane Ross from Scotland, had come to Greece on June 26 and resided at a friend’s home in the Piraeus area until July 10, when she left for an unknown location within the wider Attica region.
Through the ensuing investigation — drawing on collected evidence and digital analysis of video footage — the Department of Crimes against Life and Personal Freedom confirmed the involvement of the 26-year-old suspect.
He was brought in for questioning on Thursday at the headquarters of the Directorate for Combating Organised Crime, where, according to police, he admitted to his actions.
Investigators determined that the suspect had placed the victim’s body in a suitcase and transported it to the abandoned site.
In the days that followed, he used the victim’s bank cards to withdraw cash. A search of his home turned up a replica pistol and a knife, both of which were seized, leading to an additional charge of weapons violations.
Police noted that the investigation involved cooperation with a liaison officer from the UK’s National Crime Agency (NCA), as well as with Police Scotland.
The suspect has been brought before the relevant prosecutor’s office.