ATHENS, Greece -- A man accused of killing a Scottish woman in Athens and disposing of her body in a suitcase is due to appear in court Wednesday. The woman, identified in Scotland as 38-year-old Elisabeth Jane Ross, was discovered inside the suitcase at an abandoned building on July 18. “Despite the advanced state of decomposition and difficult environmental conditions, they succeeded in recovering usable fingerprints belonging to the victim,” a police statement said after the suspect’s arrest Sunday. The body was found during a heat wave when temperatures reached 36 degrees Celsius (97 degrees Fahrenheit). The 26-year-old suspect was identified only as a foreign national who has been granted legal asylum, in line with Greece’s strict data protection laws, which generally prohibit authorities from naming criminal suspects without their consent. Greek public broadcaster ERT reported that the suspect was born in Afghanistan and pursuing a boxing career in Athens, details that authorities have not publicly confirmed. Police said the man was detained for questioning after investigators reviewed surveillance camera footage recorded near the abandoned building. The victim was identified with assistance from U.S. authorities and the international police agency Interpol, Greek officials said, with assistance from U.K. authorities. The suspect, who was initially detained on illegal weapons possession charges, is facing a murder charge as well as allegations that he stole more than 10,000 euros (US$11,500) from the victim’s bank accounts using her bank cards, police said. Greek officials said the suspect admitted moving the body but denied the murder allegations. Authorities are awaiting the results of tissue analysis to determine whether the woman died from suffocation, as suggested by a preliminary assessment by the medical examiner. ------ By Costas Kantouris and Derek Gatopoulos, The Associated Press Kantouris reported from Thessaloniki, Greece.
