Afghan Boxer Sharif Ahmadzai Arrested Over Death Of Scottish Aid Worker Elisabeth Ross In Greece

Greek police have arrested a 26-year-old Afghan-born boxer in connection with the death of Scottish aid worker Elisabeth Jane Ross, whose body was found inside a suitcase in an abandoned building in Athens last month.

According to a BBC report, the suspect has been identified as Sharif Ahmadzai, a champion boxer who settled in Greece after arriving there as a teenage refugee from Afghanistan.

He has been taken into custody on suspicion of intentional homicide, robbery and weapons offences, and is expected to appear before a court in Athens on Wednesday.

Ross, 38, from Edinburgh, was known to family and friends as Lisa. Her body was discovered on 18 July in the Kypseli district of Athens, several days after she had been reported missing.

Authorities are investigating whether she and Ahmadzai may have known each other through their involvement in refugee-support organisations.

Police said an initial coroner's examination was unable to determine the cause of death. However, further forensic analysis later concluded that Ross's death was the result of an "obvious criminal act, likely asphyxiation".

The BBC reported that Ahmadzai was orphaned at the age of 15 after his father, an Afghan army commander, was shot dead and his mother and siblings were killed in a suicide bombing in Kabul.

He later fled Afghanistan, travelling through Iran and Turkey before reaching Greece, where he stayed in a refugee camp on the island of Lesbos.

It is understood that Ahmadzai later met his American wife, Alaina Hall, in Greece and converted to Christianity. The couple subsequently founded Love Every Nation Athens, a charity aimed at assisting refugees, and are believed to live in Greece with their child.

Investigators said Ross arrived in Greece on 26 June and stayed in the Keratsini area of Piraeus until 10 July. She had been volunteering with a refugee-support group in Athens and had reportedly told friends that she planned to travel to Kypseli on 15 July to meet "American friends".

Greek police are examining whether Ahmadzai had access to the apartment where Ross had been staying. Authorities said they had verified surveillance footage that appears to show the suspect carrying a suitcase believed to have contained Ross's body.

Investigators also said that location data from a mobile application used by Ahmadzai's wife placed the suspect at 9 Rethymnou Street -- the address where Ross is believed to have died -- in the days before her body was discovered.

Police further alleged that Ross's bank cards were used to make cash withdrawals after her death. The abandoned building where her body was found is located about 20 minutes from the apartment where she had been staying.

Speaking to BBC News, George Kalliakmanis, president of the Union of Police Officers of Southeast Attica, said investigators were exploring whether Ross and Ahmadzai had previously crossed paths through boxing or humanitarian work.

"They [police investigators] are looking into whether he [Ahmadzai] had met her [Ross] previously through his involvement in boxing or an NGO working with refugees, as she also worked for an NGO. Could they have crossed paths in the past? Yes, it's possible."

Kalliakmanis added that Ahmadzai has denied murdering Ross but has admitted moving her body after her death. Greek authorities continue to investigate the circumstances surrounding the killing and the nature of any prior connection between the suspect and the victim.