Scottish Woman Found Dead in Suitcase in Athens May Have Been Deliberately Lured to Abandoned Building, Police Say

Greek authorities are examining whether a 38-year-old Scottish woman found dead in a suitcase in central Athens was deliberately lured to an abandoned building, after her remains were discovered on 18 July.

The victim, named in Greek media reports as Elisabeth‑Jane Ross, was found inside a derelict property in the Kypseli district, prompting an investigation involving Greek police, Interpol and UK authorities.

Interpol Match Advances Case of Scottish Woman Found in Suitcase

A local homeless man reported a strong smell coming from 7 Evelpidon Street shortly after 1pm and entered the building, which is understood to have been empty for about two years. In a deserted room he saw part of a body protruding from a suitcase and alerted the authorities. Investigators are working on the possibility that the woman was brought to the site and left there.

Initial examinations at the scene found no visible injuries and no obvious signs of a struggle, according to officials. Early estimates put the woman's age at around 30 and her height at about 5ft 4in, with reddish hair tied in a bun.

She was found wearing a T‑shirt and black shorts bearing a French university emblem, which led local officers to consider early on that she was unlikely to be a permanent Greek resident.

The circumstances of the discovery led Athens police to seek assistance from overseas agencies. Interpol, which is called in when national forces require cross‑border help, and US investigators were approached for support in identifying the victim.

On Monday, Interpol informed Hellenic Police that DNA analysis had matched the remains to a British national.

The Foreign Office and Police Scotland confirmed they were aware of the case, with a Police Scotland spokesperson saying officers were liaising with Greek counterparts and supporting the woman's family. A Foreign Office representative said consular assistance was being provided.

Greek media reported that the victim's father and the British embassy in Athens were notified shortly after the identification. Travel records cited by local outlets indicate the 38‑year‑old flew to Greece on 29 June via Cyprus, having previously travelled from the United States.

Greek officers have described the discovery of a foreign national inside a suitcase in a central Athens building as highly unusual and said it has prompted close coordination with British authorities.

Missing Timeline Complicates Athens Investigation

Detectives are now trying to reconstruct the woman's movements in the days before her death, and are speaking to anyone believed to have had contact with her in Athens. Investigators believe she had been dead for about eight days when her body was found.

One official has said investigators suspect she may have been led to the building by a homeless person, who then left her 'in the state she was found'. That account has not yet been detailed publicly in full and remains part of the working lines of inquiry.

Police have launched searches across the capital, including checks at hotels, to establish where she stayed and who she may have met after arriving in Greece. Officers are examining travel and accommodation records as they attempt to build a timeline.

A full post‑mortem examination is expected in the coming days to determine the cause and manner of death. Until those findings are available, investigators are concentrating on the chronology of events, noting that the woman was sealed inside luggage and that there were no clear external signs of violence at the scene.

The investigation remains open, and Greek and British authorities continue to cooperate as they work to clarify how the Scottish woman ended up dead in an abandoned building in Athens.