Sharif Ahmadzai Afghan boxer to be charged with murder of Elisabeth-Jane Ross, Edingburgh, Scottish charity worker found stuffed in suitcase in derelict building after US NGO wife, Christian Alaina Hall fearing the worse after migrant husband going missing and hiding in Athens, Greece suburb. Arrested man admits dragging suitcase with body but denies killing UK woman.
An Afghan migrant has admitted carrying a suitcase through the streets of Athens, Greece allegedly containing the body of a slain British charity worker while denying murdering the woman.
Sharif Ahmadzai also a champion boxer was arrested on Monday after surveillance video captured the migrant wheeling a case through the city while walking down the middle of the road.
In captured footage, Ahmadzai is seen heading towards an abandoned car park in the Kypseli area of the Greek capital while also holding a blue rucksack.
CCTV footage incriminates Afghan migrant seen dragging suitcase through Athens, Greece street
According to Greek authorities, CCTV footage was filmed in the early hours of July 16 just hours after Elisabeth-Jane Ross was killed and her body found stuffed in a suitcase at an abandoned building hours later.
Some 13 minutes after the suspect is seen dragging the suitcase, Ahmadzai is spotted emerging from the derelict site without the bags.
Other footage gathered by police reportedly showed him arriving at Ms Ross’s ground-floor apartment in a car that belonged to his wife – US-born Christian Alaina Hall – on the evening of July 15.
Ahmadzai, 26, is suspected of killing the 38-year-old British woman, also known as Lisa, before putting her body in a bag and dumping it in a derelict building. The woman’s discarded body would be found seven days later by a homeless man according to previous reports.
Phone texts sent in the days after Scottish charity worker’s death
The competitive boxer trained at the historic Panellinios Boxing club in Kypseli — directly across the road from where Ross’s body was discovered.
Police also allege Ross’s mobile phone also being used for several days after her death to send what they described as ‘deliberately misleading’ text messages to family and friends, including one stating she had a ‘need to be alone’, in an apparent attempt to delay her being reported missing.
Local reports tell of Ahmadzai arriving at the island of Lesvos in 2016 by a small boat. He then converted to Christianity and married Ms Hall in 2023 before they set up a ministry helping refugees in Athens.
The couple is believed to have known Ms Ross, who was also a Christian volunteer, through their work.
They had a key to the flat she was staying in as it was owned by their organisation, Love Every Nation Athens, the dailymail reported.
Boxing migrant’s wife suspicions raised
Officers started probing Ahmadzai after his wife allegedly reported her husband had been behaving suspiciously on July 30.
She allegedly said she woke to find him missing on the evening of July 15 and checked his shared location which showed him at Ms Ross’s apartment.
Ahmadzai is understood to have told police he found Ms Ross already dead in her bathroom.
He allegedly admitted he used the victim’s bank cards to withdraw up to withdrawing €10,000 from ATM’s along with using her phone to send messages to relatives and friends, pretending to be her the Greek Herald reported.
Investigators are examining whether a confrontation occurred after Ross allegedly discovered her credit cards being stolen or whether the incident was linked to an alleged sexual assault. Police have not determined a motive.
Boxer wife suspicions raised
Forensic experts believe Ross was ‘likely asphyxiated’, although an initial post-mortem examination was inconclusive because of the advanced state of decomposition. Further toxicology tests are expected to determine the exact cause of death.
Ahmadzai’s wife grew suspicious when it was announced Ms Ross’s body had been found. She left the family home with their baby and stayed in a hotel.
Ahmadzai gave her the sum of 2,550 euros and a new Apple iPhone 17 Pro but she refused them.
She handed them to police believing they were bought with Ms Ross’s money.
Detectives raided the family home on August 1 and found a black metal replica Glock-style pistol and a black military-style knife, the dailymail reported.
Afghan migrant journey to a better life
Ahmadzai is a Super Light professional boxer who has had two fights in Athens with one loss and one victory.
His life story has been documented in a cartoon video and a forthcoming book titled: ‘From Hell To Home: How Loss, Exile And Hope Built The Man I Became.’
Ahmadzai wrote: ‘No matter how dark your story is, there is always light at the end of the tunnel.’
Ahmadzai was born in Afghanistan to a military commander father who survived six Taliban assassination attempts before being killed in a midnight ambush when Ahmadzai was four according to the UK Times.
When he was nine, his older brother Samuel was kidnapped by the Taliban and never returned.
His mother, sister and younger brother were killed in a suicide car bomb six years later leaving him an orphan.
Alone in Kabul, Sharif Ahmadzai used his family’s remaining money to leave Afghanistan and spent 45 days walking through Pakistan, Iran and Turkey in freezing conditions.
Upon arriving in Turkey, he made three attempts to get to Greece by sea. His boats sank on the first two journeys before he was finally successful.
Ahmadzai arrived on the island of Lesvos aged 16 in 2016 and entered Moria Camp where he taught himself English and began translating for a humanitarian organisation.
He met Alaina, who was volunteering at the centre that year, converted to Christianity the following year and moved to Athens in 2019.
It was here he began boxing in a park before helping train refugee boys. He developed romantic feelings for Alaina in 2021 and proposed the following year.
His wife said: ‘I had seen his growth and his heart for the Lord, and it was so attractive to me…
‘We had both entered the relationship with intentionality; we both had the same heart and desire – to love the Lord and to serve people…
‘There were challenges, and it definitely wasn’t an easy road, but the Lord was faithful through it all.’
They founded Love Every Nation Athens before marrying on April 29, 2023.
Sharif Ahmadzai who won a Greek super lightweight boxing title in March had been running free boxing sessions five nights a week for unaccompanied teenage boys along with his wife distributing food bags and prescriptions weekly to refugee families.
The couple also organised community events, sports sessions, and activities for young people across Athens.
Police sources previously revealed that the Christian convert told his wife that he had argued with Ms Ross because she wanted him to join her ‘stricter’ Christian group.
Possible murder motive?
He was arrested shortly after Ms Ross’s mobile phone – which had been off for days – was suddenly switched on earlier this week with police immediately tracing it to a residence in Athens where he was staying.
When questioned by detectives, his wife told officers they had earlier been staying in Arachova, a mountainous village around two hours away from Athens and while there she became concerned after her husband went missing.
After using a shared location tracking app, she saw that he was in an apartment in Rethymnou Street, where Ms Ross was staying and is believed to have been killed.
A police source revealed: ‘The woman told us that her husband had confided in her that he was angry with the British woman. She was trying to influence him religiously and it became too much for him.’
Ross, who was from Edinburgh, Scotland had been a regular visitor to Greece over the past seven years volunteering with NGOs helping refugees, homeless people and other vulnerable groups.
She had previously volunteered with the One Heart organisation when in Greece, which specialises in providing medical support to refugees, particularly those from Afghanistan or Iran.
She arrived in Athens on June 26 and had initially been staying with Greek friends in the Keratsini district, the country’s main seaport close to the city.
Police confirmed that she moved to Rethymnou Street in Athens city centre on July 2 and was volunteering with a Christian-based NGO working with refugees and other vulnerable groups.
CCTV footage gathered by police showed the Afghan man arriving by car at Ms Ross’s ground-floor flat on the evening of July 16.
At around 10pm, cameras captured Sharif Ahmadzai carrying the suitcase along the road on which the abandoned car park is located. Thirteen minutes later he is seen walking away from the derelict site without the suitcase.
The last confirmed sign of life from Ms Ross was recorded at 9.41pm on July 15, when she called a close friend.
Following that, her friends and relatives continued to receive messages from her, but they became suspicious that they were not genuine because of the style of language.
She also spoke about going away and wanting to be alone, which they thought was out of character for her.
Offered a source via the UK Times, ‘I don’t know what happened, we are all very confused because he is a good man, very religious and always quoting from the bible.’
Adding, ‘He is a decent boxer but not good enough to make a living, he had lots of other jobs to support him too.’
Reflected Sahar Kamrani Lankhaar, One Heart NGO president, ‘Lisa was a lovely and very kind volunteer. We are all shocked and appalled by this senseless murder of a woman who set out to help people.’
Ahmadzai is due to appear before magistrates in Athens on Wednesday where he will be formally charged with murder.
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