Greek police find body of missing scientist
August 7, 2019
Greek police announced on Wednesday that they had found the body of a missing British scientist in a ravine.
Natalie Christopher had not been seen since she left to go for a jog on Monday on the island of Ikaria.
"The body of the 35-year-old British national was found by search teams [in] a ravine about 20 meters deep," Greek police said. It did not give any more details.
Greece's ERT television said Christopher's body was discovered by a volunteer.
Police had earlier pulled in a specialized unit to assist in their search for the 35-year-old.
A spokesperson for the Greek police told the French news agency a military helicopter "carrying officers and special equipment to locate missing persons left Athens on Tuesday night."
Christopher was reportedly on holiday with her partner from Nicosia, Cyprus, where she is based. Her partner alerted police when she did not return from a run on Monday morning. Police then opened an initial investigation into the disappearance.
The part of Ikaria where Christopher went running has paths along steep cliffs.
Her disappearance had sparked a massive campaign on social media, with numerous Twitter accounts pleading for information.
Christopher was involved in a number of projects, including "Cyprus Girls Can," which aims to break down barriers between Greek and Turkish youngsters on the divided island.
The incident comes three weeks after the murder of US biologist Suzanne Eaton on the Greek island of Crete.
jns, jsi/msh (AP, AFP, Reuters)