Slain woman was Russian

The woman found dead at sea in Sliema on Thursday morning was Russian, sources said yesterday.

Several people are being held by the police in connection with the case, the sources added.

The woman aged 25 was identified after intensive investigations but no further information was divulged because of the "delicate nature of the investigations".

Investigating officers have followed up information that came in via a few calls after the publication of a morgue photo of the dead woman.

The callers said they thought they recognised the victim. It is not clear whether the woman's identification resulted from these calls.

The woman is believed to have been murdered early on Thursday morning and dumped at sea opposite the former Chalet in Sliema, where her corpse was spotted at about 7.30 a.m.

The woman had a black garbage bag around her head. An autopsy, carried out on Thursday morning, showed strangulation marks on her neck.

The slain woman had a small panther tattoo on her right shoulder. Apart from the tattoo nothing else was found on her that could lead to her identification.

She was not wearing any jewellery when her body was found, the sources said.

Yesterday, army divers had to call off plans to scan the seabed for clues related to the woman's identity or to the crime because of rough north easterly winds.

The police are appealing to anyone who knew the woman or who may have seen her or has any information about the case to call them confidentially on 2122 1111.