Boxer charged with killing aid worker in Athens after his wife gave police 'key' details
✓Image source, Facebook
Alaina Hall gave police "key" information about her husband Sharif Ahmadzai
ByMegan BonarBBC Scotland and Ben PhilipReporting fromAthens
An Afghan boxer was accused of killing a Scottish aid worker in Greece after his wife gave "key" details to police, the BBC has been told.
Sharif Ahmadzai, 26, has been charged with homicide with intent – equivalent to a murder charge in Scots law - alongside robbery and weapons offences.
The body of Elisabeth Ross, who was 38, was discovered in a suitcase by a homeless man in a derelict building in the Kypseli area of Athens on 18 July.
Ahmadzai's wife, Alaina Hall, is said to have given information to police, including location data which placed her husband and Ross at the same apartment on 15 July – the day Ross is thought to have been killed.
Appearing in court earlier, Ahmadzai asked for an English translator but did not respond to the charges.
His lawyer, Christos Erdas, said his client had exercised his right to remain silent, and that his rights had been "violated" through leaks of evidence and documents from the case file - including his right to the presumption of innocence.
The lawyer said that when Ross was found, she had no injuries and any apparent cause of death was "entirely absent".
He said his client wanted the forensic medical report and the "toxicological and histological examinations of the deceased" to be included in the case file.
Erdas added: "His [Ahmadzai's] stance towards the prosecuting and investigating authorities did not constitute a stance of denial but, on the contrary, one of reservation, so that he may present his defence in full once the case file has been completed with the above essential documents – which were not sought by the preliminary investigating authorities – with the sole aim of establishing the substantive truth for both sides."
Ahmadzai was remanded in custody until his trial, which could take up to 18 months.
Sharif Ahmadzai questioned by journalists as he leaves Greek court
Ahmadzai was initially detained on illegal weapons possession charges and is facing a charge of homicide with intent, as well as allegations that he stole more than €10,000 (£8,500) from the victim's bank accounts using her bank cards.
The police union in Greece said that initially, the coroner's report cited an undetermined cause of death, as the body showed no signs of external trauma.
It said following a more detailed investigation, autopsy and post-mortem examination, "asphyxiation was listed as the probable cause of death".
The union has now told the BBC that officers arrested the accused after his wife provided them with "key" and "decisive" details.
Officers involved with the case said these details included sharing a location-tracking app, which placed both Ahmadzai and Ross at the same apartment.
Hall, who has a child with Ahmadzai, told police that she and her husband met Elisabeth – known as Lisa - while volunteering for a refugee charity in Athens in February 2026.
She described the victim as a "very pleasant and sweet person, kind-hearted, with a good soul".
Image source, Facebook
Elisabeth Ross is believed to have been working with immigrants in Greece
Hall claimed that after the three had gone on a walk, her husband remained in touch with Ross for several days. The aid worker is believed to have asked Ahmadzai to help deliver bibles.
Court documents claim that on 15 July, Hall said she saw a text message sent from Ross to Ahmadzai which read: "Thank you for your intention to come with me."
Hall claimed in a statement that she awoke later that night to find that her husband had left their home without warning.
She is quoted as saying: "I checked his location on my cell phone. I saw that he was inside the apartment on Rethymno Street.
"I was surprised because there was no particular reason for him to be there at that time."
She claimed her husband told her that he was watching football at a café and headed to the apartment to use the toilet – which she initially believed but no longer did.
Hall said that in the days that followed, her husband appeared to be particularly upset, blaming the death of a relative in India. She said he suggested they leave the city unexpectedly.
Elisabeth Ross's body was found in an abandoned building in Athens
She said after this, her husband appeared to be happy once again, bought her a new iPhone 17 Pro and later gave her €2,550 (£2,180). Hall said he could not "convincingly" explain where this money came from.
When news broke that a woman had been found dead inside a suitcase close to where the couple lived, Hall said she woke up in the middle of the night on 29 July and thought it could be Ross.
She told investigators that after messaging the aid worker, the replies "were not in Lisa's style both in terms of her level of English and the use of emojis that she never used". She said this prompted her to become concerned that Ross could be the woman in the suitcase.
She told police: "All of the above made me feel strange. Especially combining the dates, the messages and my husband's behaviour.
"I have various thoughts that make me feel uncomfortable."
After the body was identified, Hall said she received threatening messages with photos of herself and her baby. She told police she became so afraid that she and Ahmadzai left their home and spent the night in different places.
Sharif Ahmadzai arrives at court in Athens earlier on Thursday
The BBC has been told Ahmadzai denies homicide with intent but admits moving the body, claiming that he did so because he feared he would be blamed for her death.
A statement from the police's organised crime directorate said Ahmadzai was brought to a police station on 30 July.
"In particular, it emerged that the 26-year-old placed the body in a suitcase and transported it to the abandoned site," the statement said.
Ahmadzai is accused of killing Ross, then sending a series of messages from her phone to her friends and family before switching off the device.
Greek newspapers Proto Thema and Ta Nea have reported that he bought a phone and texted Ross's friends in Athens, impersonating an unnamed jihadist saying he had killed the Scot because of her religion.
The newspapers reported his wife told the police she suspected her husband's involvement in the killing when she woke up to find he was not in their apartment and tracked his phone to where Ross was staying.
Police said Ross - who is from Edinburgh and is known to family and friends as Lisa - 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.
Ross is believed to have died a number of days before she was found.
Greek officials contacted Interpol and American authorities were able to identify her fingerprints.
The investigation was carried out by Greece's organised crime directorate.
Additional reporting by Daphne Toli in Athens and Georgina Hayes.
Read the full story at BBC ↗ · Sky News ↗
Sharif Ahmadzai, who is 26 and from Afghanistan, faces charges of homicide with intent, robbery and weapons offences
This lens runs the verified story through Cinnamon's AI — wired in the next step.
Image source, Facebook
Alaina Hall gave police "key" information about her husband Sharif Ahmadzai
ByMegan BonarBBC Scotland and Ben PhilipReporting fromAthens
An Afghan boxer was accused of killing a Scottish aid worker in Greece after his wife gave "key" details to police, the BBC has been told.
Sharif Ahmadzai, 26, has been charged with homicide with intent – equivalent to a murder charge in Scots law - alongside robbery and weapons offences.
The body of Elisabeth Ross, who was 38, was discovered in a suitcase by a homeless man in a derelict building in the Kypseli area of Athens on 18 July.
Ahmadzai's wife, Alaina Hall, is said to have given information to police, including location data which placed her husband and Ross at the same apartment on 15 July – the day Ross is thought to have been killed.
Appearing in court earlier, Ahmadzai asked for an English translator but did not respond to the charges.
His lawyer, Christos Erdas, said his client had exercised his right to remain silent, and that his rights had been "violated" through leaks of evidence and documents from the case file - including his right to the presumption of innocence.
The lawyer said that when Ross was found, she had no injuries and any apparent cause of death was "entirely absent".
He said his client wanted the forensic medical report and the "toxicological and histological examinations of the deceased" to be included in the case file.
Erdas added: "His [Ahmadzai's] stance towards the prosecuting and investigating authorities did not constitute a stance of denial but, on the contrary, one of reservation, so that he may present his defence in full once the case file has been completed with the above essential documents – which were not sought by the preliminary investigating authorities – with the sole aim of establishing the substantive truth for both sides."
Ahmadzai was remanded in custody until his trial, which could take up to 18 months.
Sharif Ahmadzai questioned by journalists as he leaves Greek court
Ahmadzai was initially detained on illegal weapons possession charges and is facing a charge of homicide with intent, as well as allegations that he stole more than €10,000 (£8,500) from the victim's bank accounts using her bank cards.
The police union in Greece said that initially, the coroner's report cited an undetermined cause of death, as the body showed no signs of external trauma.
It said following a more detailed investigation, autopsy and post-mortem examination, "asphyxiation was listed as the probable cause of death".
The union has now told the BBC that officers arrested the accused after his wife provided them with "key" and "decisive" details.
Officers involved with the case said these details included sharing a location-tracking app, which placed both Ahmadzai and Ross at the same apartment.
Hall, who has a child with Ahmadzai, told police that she and her husband met Elisabeth – known as Lisa - while volunteering for a refugee charity in Athens in February 2026.
She described the victim as a "very pleasant and sweet person, kind-hearted, with a good soul".
Image source, Facebook
Elisabeth Ross is believed to have been working with immigrants in Greece
Hall claimed that after the three had gone on a walk, her husband remained in touch with Ross for several days. The aid worker is believed to have asked Ahmadzai to help deliver bibles.
Court documents claim that on 15 July, Hall said she saw a text message sent from Ross to Ahmadzai which read: "Thank you for your intention to come with me."
Hall claimed in a statement that she awoke later that night to find that her husband had left their home without warning.
She is quoted as saying: "I checked his location on my cell phone. I saw that he was inside the apartment on Rethymno Street.
"I was surprised because there was no particular reason for him to be there at that time."
She claimed her husband told her that he was watching football at a café and headed to the apartment to use the toilet – which she initially believed but no longer did.
Hall said that in the days that followed, her husband appeared to be particularly upset, blaming the death of a relative in India. She said he suggested they leave the city unexpectedly.
Elisabeth Ross's body was found in an abandoned building in Athens
She said after this, her husband appeared to be happy once again, bought her a new iPhone 17 Pro and later gave her €2,550 (£2,180). Hall said he could not "convincingly" explain where this money came from.
When news broke that a woman had been found dead inside a suitcase close to where the couple lived, Hall said she woke up in the middle of the night on 29 July and thought it could be Ross.
She told investigators that after messaging the aid worker, the replies "were not in Lisa's style both in terms of her level of English and the use of emojis that she never used". She said this prompted her to become concerned that Ross could be the woman in the suitcase.
She told police: "All of the above made me feel strange. Especially combining the dates, the messages and my husband's behaviour.
"I have various thoughts that make me feel uncomfortable."
After the body was identified, Hall said she received threatening messages with photos of herself and her baby. She told police she became so afraid that she and Ahmadzai left their home and spent the night in different places.
Sharif Ahmadzai arrives at court in Athens earlier on Thursday
The BBC has been told Ahmadzai denies homicide with intent but admits moving the body, claiming that he did so because he feared he would be blamed for her death.
A statement from the police's organised crime directorate said Ahmadzai was brought to a police station on 30 July.
"In particular, it emerged that the 26-year-old placed the body in a suitcase and transported it to the abandoned site," the statement said.
Ahmadzai is accused of killing Ross, then sending a series of messages from her phone to her friends and family before switching off the device.
Greek newspapers Proto Thema and Ta Nea have reported that he bought a phone and texted Ross's friends in Athens, impersonating an unnamed jihadist saying he had killed the Scot because of her religion.
The newspapers reported his wife told the police she suspected her husband's involvement in the killing when she woke up to find he was not in their apartment and tracked his phone to where Ross was staying.
Police said Ross - who is from Edinburgh and is known to family and friends as Lisa - 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.
Ross is believed to have died a number of days before she was found.
Greek officials contacted Interpol and American authorities were able to identify her fingerprints.
The investigation was carried out by Greece's organised crime directorate.
Additional reporting by Daphne Toli in Athens and Georgina Hayes.
Read the full story at BBC ↗ · Sky News ↗
Image source, Facebook
Alaina Hall gave police "key" information about her husband Sharif Ahmadzai
ByMegan BonarBBC Scotland and Ben PhilipReporting fromAthens
An Afghan boxer was accused of killing a Scottish aid worker in Greece after his wife gave "key" details to police, the BBC has been told.
Sharif Ahmadzai, 26, has been charged with homicide with intent – equivalent to a murder charge in Scots law - alongside robbery and weapons offences.
The body of Elisabeth Ross, who was 38, was discovered in a suitcase by a homeless man in a derelict building in the Kypseli area of Athens on 18 July.
Ahmadzai's wife, Alaina Hall, is said to have given information to police, including location data which placed her husband and Ross at the same apartment on 15 July – the day Ross is thought to have been killed.
Appearing in court earlier, Ahmadzai asked for an English translator but did not respond to the charges.
His lawyer, Christos Erdas, said his client had exercised his right to remain silent, and that his rights had been "violated" through leaks of evidence and documents from the case file - including his right to the presumption of innocence.
The lawyer said that when Ross was found, she had no injuries and any apparent cause of death was "entirely absent".
He said his client wanted the forensic medical report and the "toxicological and histological examinations of the deceased" to be included in the case file.
Erdas added: "His [Ahmadzai's] stance towards the prosecuting and investigating authorities did not constitute a stance of denial but, on the contrary, one of reservation, so that he may present his defence in full once the case file has been completed with the above essential documents – which were not sought by the preliminary investigating authorities – with the sole aim of establishing the substantive truth for both sides."
Ahmadzai was remanded in custody until his trial, which could take up to 18 months.
Sharif Ahmadzai questioned by journalists as he leaves Greek court
Ahmadzai was initially detained on illegal weapons possession charges and is facing a charge of homicide with intent, as well as allegations that he stole more than €10,000 (£8,500) from the victim's bank accounts using her bank cards.
The police union in Greece said that initially, the coroner's report cited an undetermined cause of death, as the body showed no signs of external trauma.
It said following a more detailed investigation, autopsy and post-mortem examination, "asphyxiation was listed as the probable cause of death".
The union has now told the BBC that officers arrested the accused after his wife provided them with "key" and "decisive" details.
Officers involved with the case said these details included sharing a location-tracking app, which placed both Ahmadzai and Ross at the same apartment.
Hall, who has a child with Ahmadzai, told police that she and her husband met Elisabeth – known as Lisa - while volunteering for a refugee charity in Athens in February 2026.
She described the victim as a "very pleasant and sweet person, kind-hearted, with a good soul".
Image source, Facebook
Elisabeth Ross is believed to have been working with immigrants in Greece
Hall claimed that after the three had gone on a walk, her husband remained in touch with Ross for several days. The aid worker is believed to have asked Ahmadzai to help deliver bibles.
Court documents claim that on 15 July, Hall said she saw a text message sent from Ross to Ahmadzai which read: "Thank you for your intention to come with me."
Hall claimed in a statement that she awoke later that night to find that her husband had left their home without warning.
She is quoted as saying: "I checked his location on my cell phone. I saw that he was inside the apartment on Rethymno Street.
"I was surprised because there was no particular reason for him to be there at that time."
She claimed her husband told her that he was watching football at a café and headed to the apartment to use the toilet – which she initially believed but no longer did.
Hall said that in the days that followed, her husband appeared to be particularly upset, blaming the death of a relative in India. She said he suggested they leave the city unexpectedly.
Elisabeth Ross's body was found in an abandoned building in Athens
She said after this, her husband appeared to be happy once again, bought her a new iPhone 17 Pro and later gave her €2,550 (£2,180). Hall said he could not "convincingly" explain where this money came from.
When news broke that a woman had been found dead inside a suitcase close to where the couple lived, Hall said she woke up in the middle of the night on 29 July and thought it could be Ross.
She told investigators that after messaging the aid worker, the replies "were not in Lisa's style both in terms of her level of English and the use of emojis that she never used". She said this prompted her to become concerned that Ross could be the woman in the suitcase.
She told police: "All of the above made me feel strange. Especially combining the dates, the messages and my husband's behaviour.
"I have various thoughts that make me feel uncomfortable."
After the body was identified, Hall said she received threatening messages with photos of herself and her baby. She told police she became so afraid that she and Ahmadzai left their home and spent the night in different places.
Sharif Ahmadzai arrives at court in Athens earlier on Thursday
The BBC has been told Ahmadzai denies homicide with intent but admits moving the body, claiming that he did so because he feared he would be blamed for her death.
A statement from the police's organised crime directorate said Ahmadzai was brought to a police station on 30 July.
"In particular, it emerged that the 26-year-old placed the body in a suitcase and transported it to the abandoned site," the statement said.
Ahmadzai is accused of killing Ross, then sending a series of messages from her phone to her friends and family before switching off the device.
Greek newspapers Proto Thema and Ta Nea have reported that he bought a phone and texted Ross's friends in Athens, impersonating an unnamed jihadist saying he had killed the Scot because of her religion.
The newspapers reported his wife told the police she suspected her husband's involvement in the killing when she woke up to find he was not in their apartment and tracked his phone to where Ross was staying.
Police said Ross - who is from Edinburgh and is known to family and friends as Lisa - 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.
Ross is believed to have died a number of days before she was found.
Greek officials contacted Interpol and American authorities were able to identify her fingerprints.
The investigation was carried out by Greece's organised crime directorate.
Additional reporting by Daphne Toli in Athens and Georgina Hayes.
Read the full story at BBC ↗ · Sky News ↗
This lens runs the verified story through Cinnamon's AI — wired in the next step.
- Sharif Ahmadzai, who is 26 and from Afghanistan, faces charges of homicide with intent, robbery and weapons offences