Argentine woman strangled in Messina: Tunisian man confesses to August murder
Melissa Echevarria, 40, found dead on 14 August in a courtyard in Messina, was murdered. A 44-year-old Tunisian man already in detention has confessed to the crime.
Breakthrough in Echevarria case: man already in prison confesses to abuse charges
ANSA Cronaca reports that the death of Melissa Echevarria, the 40-year-old Argentine woman whose body was found on 14 August in the courtyard of an abandoned building in Messina, has been classified as murder. Nearly a month after the discovery, a 44-year-old Tunisian man already detained for another reason has confessed to killing her.
Melissa lived on the margins of society, in an abandoned dwelling that did not belong to her, supporting herself by whatever means she could. Investigators established that she used narcotic substances, which she had also taken in the hours before her death. Initially, the hypothesis of violent death had been ruled out: the autopsy carried out at the Piemonte hospital in Messina had found no signs of firearm wounds, no cut wounds, and no obvious signs of violence on the body. The examinations had been made more difficult by the advanced state of decomposition of the corpse.
What prompted investigators to continue their inquiries was one specific element: the position of the body suggested the presence of another person next to the woman, who then fled. The mobile squad of the Messina Police Headquarters, coordinated by the local Prosecutor's Office, therefore reconsidered the scenario. The new reconstruction hypothesises that Melissa was strangled.
Investigators focused their attention on a 44-year-old Tunisian man, already in prison for a week on charges of family abuse. He has previous convictions for personal injury and violation of a restraining order. His name emerged during his detention: when pressed by investigators, the man confessed to killing Melissa at the climax of a row.
His statements are now under examination by the judicial authority. The exact circumstances of the crime and, above all, the motive remain to be clarified. The Messina Prosecutor's Office is considering charges of both voluntary and unintentional homicide.
The 40-year-old Argentine had been buried in the Lipari cemetery. To fully shed light on the causes and circumstances of the death, exhumation of the body may be necessary, along with further investigations.
Source: ANSA Cronaca