UK man held as woman’s body found in Colombia suitcase

A British man was arrested in Ecuador after a woman’s body was found inside a suitcase, even though he told The Sun newspaper he was watching a World Cup match at the time.

Local authorities said the man allegedly caused the death of a 36-year-old woman in an apartment in the Chico neighborhood of Bogota, Colombia, on June 18.

But the 46-year-old man, from Bournemouth, reportedly called The Sun the day before his arrest and said: “I was watching the England v Croatia game on the big screen in a pub in Ireland, so that wasn’t me.”

“After the game, I went to the mall, walked around, got an ice cream and came back for the next games.”

England’s World Cup match took place on 17 June.

The Sun reported that the suspect called the newsroom a second time on Friday before his arrest, and a source told the paper that he was located through phone calls.

According to the newspaper, it was feared that he was trying to buy a plane ticket to Europe.

A post on the official X account of the Colombian Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office stated that the man is suspected of beating the victim to death, then putting his body in a suitcase, trying to hide what happened, and fleeing the scene.

Dorset Police are said to have been among the authorities who helped locate him before he was detained at Quito International Airport in Ecuador.

Local authorities said the incident came after an arrest warrant was issued by prosecutors in Colombia and a Red Notice was issued by Interpol.

Bogotá Mayor Carlos Fernando Galan said Dorset Police assisted in the operation.

And he added: “This painful case will not go unpunished.”

A Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office spokesman said: “We are supporting a British man who has been detained in Ecuador and is in contact with local authorities.”