Athens murder suspect charged after Scottish aid worker found in suitcase

Sharif Ahmadzai, 26, was charged with murder in Athens after Greek police identified the woman found in a suitcase in the Kypseli district as Elisabeth Jane Ross, a 38-year-old aid worker from Edinburgh. Ross had been missing since July 15, and her body was found on July 18 in an abandoned building after a homeless person discovered the suitcase. Ahmadzai, who is from Afghanistan, was expected to appear in court in Athens on Wednesday.

The case is moving through the Greek justice system, where the alleged killing took place and where the body was found. Greek police and prosecutors hold the criminal file, can question the suspect, test the forensic evidence and decide whether the charge advances to trial. Scottish authorities can liaise with their counterparts in Greece and support Ross’s family, but they cannot prosecute the case themselves; that authority rests with the Greek courts.

Greek police said Ahmadzai confessed his actions. Ahmadzai denied murder and admitted only to transporting the body. Investigators were still waiting for toxicology and further forensic results as they built the evidence case around the death in Athens.

Ross was also known as Lisa, and had been part of City on a Hill church in Edinburgh for 20 years. Church pastor Peter Anderson called her a “precious” member of the congregation. Police in Scotland said they were liaising with Greek authorities and supporting her family as the Greek investigation continued.