Arabic version: ملاكم أفغاني يعود إلى محكمة في أثينا على خلفية وفاة عاملة إغاثة

According to BBC News, Sharif Ahmadzai, a 26-year-old Afghan boxer, returned to court in Athens on Thursday in connection with the death of Scottish aid worker Elisabeth Ross. He faces charges of homicide with intent, robbery and weapons offences.

Ross, 38, was found by a homeless man in a derelict building in Athens’s Kypseli area on 18 July. Police said Ahmadzai was brought to a station on 30 July and that investigators concluded he placed her body in a suitcase and transported it to the abandoned site. Ross, from Edinburgh and known to family and friends as Lisa, is believed to have died several days before she was found.

Ahmadzai arrived at court in an unmarked grey car and was not pictured. He had been assigned a court-appointed lawyer on Wednesday and given time to prepare his defence. He was initially detained on illegal weapons possession charges. Police also allege that more than €10,000 (£8,500) was taken from Ross’s bank accounts using her bank cards.

Police said Ross had been volunteering with a refugee support group based in Athens. She arrived in Greece on 26 June and stayed in the Keratsini area of Piraeus until 10 July. The investigation was carried out by Greece’s Organized Crime Directorate, while Greek officials contacted Interpol after Ross’s body was discovered. American authorities were able to identify fingerprints.