Afghan Boxer Appears in Court Following Death of Scottish Aid Worker in Athens

A 26 year old professional boxer from Afghanistan appeared in court in Athens on Wednesday in connection with the death of Elisabeth Jane Ross, a 38 year old Scottish aid worker. Ross, a certified psychotherapist who had been volunteering with refugee support groups, was reported missing on July 15. Her body was discovered on July 18 wrapped in black fabric inside a green suitcase at an abandoned construction site in the Kypseli neighborhood. While an initial post mortem was hindered by decomposition, officials stated that asphyxiation was a likely cause of death.

The suspect, identified by some reports as Sharif Ahmadzai, faces charges including homicide with intent or manslaughter, robbery, and weapons offences after police found a knife and a replica pistol in his apartment. He has denied the murder charges, claiming he found Ross dead in a bathroom and panicked, which led him to place her body in a suitcase to dispose of it. Police allege that the suspect used the victim's bank card to withdraw approximately 10,000 euros and sent text messages from her phone to family and friends to make it appear she was still alive.

Investigators based their case on CCTV footage showing the suspect with a suitcase, mobile phone tracking data from his wife's app, and testimony from his wife, a U.S. national. The suspect and his wife reportedly held keys to the flat where Ross was staying. The suspect is a granted asylum seeker who previously lived in a refugee camp on Lesbos and co-founded a charity called Love Every Nation Athens. He was escorted from court by masked officers and is expected to be formally charged on Thursday, at which time judges will decide if he remains jailed pending trial.