Hailed a hero refugee ‘suitcase killer’ felt untouchable – cops are convinced he killed Brit but mystery motive remains

ONCE hailed as a fresh-faced teen with a brutally compelling story to tell, Afghan refugee Sharif Ahmadzai is now being branded a monster. A decade after first arriving in Greece, the 28-year-old is now locked up in an Athens jail cell accused of killing Brit Elisabeth Ross before disposing of her body in a suitcase and looting her bank account. Afghan boxer Sharif Ahmadzai, 26, is suspected of killing Elisabeth-Jane Ross Credit: @force1.shop Scottish aid worker Elisabeth Ross was killed last month in Athens and found stuffed inside a suitcase Credit: UGC/UNPIXS Ahmadzai became one of the posterboys of child refugee missions in Europe when he fled the murderous Taliban regime at just 16 years old. Once settled in Greece, he would go on to be accepted by the country as a proud national boxing champion before falling in love with an American woman and becoming a father. Sign up for The Sun newsletter Thank you! But this adoration is feared to have made him feel untouchable, a well-placed insider with first-hand knowledge of the shocking murder case told The Sun. They revealed: “Our view is that he internalised his heroic status as a child refugee, with all the praise he received from international organisations, and then as a champion boxer. Read more in suitcase 'killer' “Both made him feel he could do and get away with anything.” Ten years ago, international volunteers assisting the thousands of refugees landing on the shores of Lesvos in dinghies were immediately drawn to a young Ahmadzai. He was drawn to them too as in record time the young Afghan had reportedly learned English. This newfound skill saw him help interpret for aid workers stationed in Moria, the island’s notoriously overcrowded migrant camp. Most read in The Sun Field workers with the International Red Cross also quickly took a shine to the boy. They heard his miraculous story of survival as he made the journey on foot to Europe after seeing his father, brother, mother and sister die at the hands of the blood-thirsty Taliban. Ahmadzai has had two court hearings so far as he continues to deny killing Elisabeth Credit: FlashGR/X/@JohnKemmos Ahmadzai being led away from court after being formally charged with intentional homicide, robbery and possession of illegal weapons Credit: FlashGR/X/@JohnKemmos Wife Alaina told cops she was ‘revolted’ by her ‘very stubborn’ husband and firmly believes he is Elisabeth’s killer, police sources told The Sun Credit: Facebook Elisabeth, also known as Lisa, was identified several days after her body was found Credit: Family handout In 2016, an animated video released by the organisation devoted nearly ten minutes to telling his remarkable story. There was nothing, it seemed, the teen could do wrong. But today he sits in a prison awaiting trial for murder. The American grandmother who Ahmadzai calls “mom” after he was adopted by her and her relief worker husband in Lesvos told The Sun: “When I heard the news, I couldn’t imagine it to be true.” “Not in a million years.” Veterans in the solidarity movement expressed similar disbelief this week. One volunteer said: “At our core we were a small group and Sharif was extra special because he had been a refugee himself. “It all seemed so natural when he met Alaina [Hall], fell in love with her, married her and decided to stay on in Greece. CCTV footage appears to show Ahmadzai wheeling a suitcase down a road Credit: iefimerida.gr “None of us can get our heads around the fact that he is now detained in Korydallos [prison] and is the prime suspect in such a horrific case.” By the time Ahmadzai crossed paths with the Elisabeth, he had converted to Christianity and had a child with wife Alaina. His social media was littered with images from his boxing days including snaps of championship belts and pictures of his sculpted physique. Alongside his partner, Ahmadzai would also start up a Christian-backed NGO called Love Every Nation. This was where Elisabeth, the Scottish aid worker killed in Athens, and her alleged murderer Ahmadzai would become friends. The NGO would regularly meet up in Elisabeth’s flat – a first floor apartment in a nondescript 1970’s building. It was here that the 38-year-old, described as “an angel, full of kindness” by friends, is believed to have been killed on the night of July 15. With no signs of injury to her body, forensic scientists concluded she had likely been asphyxiated. They are still awaiting analysis of her blood and vital organs as advanced decomposition had made an on-site post-mortem almost impossible to conduct. “The toxicological tests will reveal the exact cause of death,” George Kalliakmanis, honorary president of the union of police officers told the Sun. “But police are 100 per cent sure it was murder. The big question, of course, is why?” A view of Korydallos Prison in Athens where Ahmadzai is being held Credit: Getty Prisoners shout and burn clothes at the windows of their cells at the high security Korydallos Prison Credit: Shutterstock What was sure to George and investigators was that Ahmadzai was a “cunning” man. Brought in for questioning on July 30 – twelve days after Elisabeth’s body was found by a homeless man inside the suitcase – Ahmadzai had reportedly appeared “calculating and evasive”. The suspect allegedly admitted to moving the Brit’s body using a trolley-art, according to Kalliakmanis. But the Afghan continues to deny murder insisting he had found Elisabeth slumped on the bathroom floor when he entered her flat. “Panic-stricken”, Ahmadzai had decided to move her elsewhere for a still unknown reason. On the third day of interrogation, he confessed to withdrawing more than 10,000 euros from ATMs using the victim’s credit cards. He also admitted to sending misleading text messages from her mobile phones to family and friends. “From the get-go he rejected the accusation of murder,” added Kalliakmanis. Once settled in Greece, Ahmadzai would go on to fall in love with an American woman and become a father Credit: Unknown Dozens of tributes have been laid at the site where Elisabeth’s body was found last month – just several kilometres away from the Afghan’s home in Kypseli Credit: UGC/UNPIXS “And to this day he has never been forthcoming about how he got the card codes that enabled him to withdraw the money. “It became clear to my colleagues that they were dealing with a cunning individual.” Police would go on to charge Ahmadzai with intentional homicide after “significant” testimony from his wife Alaina. A cop for more than 30 years, Kalliakmanis said: “She came in, she expressed her fears, she was very helpful. “She is revolted by what he has done.” Dozens of tributes have been laid at the site where Elisabeth’s body was found last month – just several kilometres away from the Afghan’s home in Kypseli. Among them are flowers and handwritten cards with one reading: “Elizabeth Jane Ross forever in our memories.” A friend in the volunteer community even claimed: “Alaina may well have placed one of them there. Her thoughts are with her, not Sharif. She feels distraught.” In her own testimony to police, leaked to the local media, the 28-year-old American had spoken of her husband’s “stubbornness”. She said: “Even if you put all the evidence, all the hard facts, right in front of him, he never admits anything.” Holed up in Korydallos, home to some of Greece’s most hardened criminals, Ahmadzai is not thought to have received any visit requests. At summer’s peak, he has been left with his own thoughts in a cell shared with eight other men. But he has wasted no time hiring a “boutique” Athens-based law firm whose clients “range from large companies to private companies and individuals”. Representing the Afghan in court last week, Christos Erdas invoked his client’s right to remain silent saying the presumption of innocence in the case of the Afghan had been violated by continuous leaks. As such, he said, Ahmedzai would not be speaking until the results of toxicological and vital organ tests were returned. Comment now