Man charged after woman's body found in suitcase

British police have charged a man with the murder of a woman whose body was found in a suitcase.

The body of 25-year-old Hungarian Alexandra Kovacs was discovered near a sports ground in Thornfield Avenue, Hendon, north London, at around 5pm on Sunday.

Hungarian Laszlo Gyarmati (aged 29) of Finchley, north London, has been charged with her murder and will appear at Hendon Magistrates’ Court tomorrow, Scotland Yard said.

A post-mortem examination took place at Finchley Mortuary yesterday but a cause of death has not been confirmed.

Earlier, police appealed for witnesses who might have seen someone moving a heavy trolley-type case in the area on or after July 18.

Detective Chief Inspector Nicola Wall said: “The homicide and serious crime command are still in the early stages of this investigation and urgently require the assistance of the public to help us establish the circumstances around the murder of this young woman.

“We are specifically appealing to anyone who witnessed anything suspicious towards the latter part of last week.

“Did you see anyone moving a heavy black trolley-type suitcase on or after July 18, especially around the Thornfield Avenue/Dollis Road entrance of the wooded area?

“We are also interested in hearing from anyone who is concerned about any young adult females who have gone missing from the immediate area recently.”

Detective Chief Superintendent Adrian Usher, borough commander for Barnet, said: “The discovery of the body of a young woman hidden in a suitcase is a tragic and shocking thing to happen. I am sure local people will be feeling unsettled by this news.

“Crimes of this serious nature are incredibly rare in our borough, which may only add to local concern over what has happened. I would like to reassure the local community that we are working closely with specialist homicide teams to establish the full circumstances surrounding this murder.”