The police on the Greek island of Crete reportedly apprehended a man on Monday in links to the killing of a scientist that was found lifeless this month in an abandoned bunker used by the Nazis during World War II.
The 27-year-old man who was held on Monday was one of the very 10 people interviewed during the weekend as part of the investigation into Suzanne Eaton’s slaying, officials said.
Eaton, a 59-year-old molecular biologist at the Max Planck Institute in Dresden, Germany was last seen July 2 near the port of the Crete city of Chania.
Police discovered her lifeless body last week in a man-made cave that had been used as a bunker during the Nazi occupation of Crete. The cave can be found at about six miles from where Eaton was last seen. She had been suffocated and the coroner ruled her death a “criminal act.”
ABC News on Monday cited a high-level police source as saying the suspect claimed he committed the murder and intentionally hit Eaton with his car.
The suspect, who wasn’t immediately identified, is reported to be a local farmer, who is also the father of two children, according to the Greek Reporter.
The search for Eaton involved police and volunteers who staged a massive effort to find her.
The European Molecular Biology Laboratory announced that flags would be flown at half-staff Monday in Eaton’s honor.