Interpol publishes photos of murdered women to help identification

Paris, May 10 (EFE).- The International Criminal Police Organization, or Interpol, released photographs of almost two dozen women Wednesday whose bodies were found in four European countries and who are believed to have been murdered.

The organization released facial reconstructions of 22 women along with pieces of clothing and jewelry found with their remains to help identify them, in a pioneering initiative.

“Most of the 22 victims died violently, and some were also abused or starved before they died. Partly because the women are likely from countries other than where they were found, their identities have not yet been established,” Carina van Leeuen and Martin de Wit of the Dutch police said in a statement on the Interpol website.

The remains were found in Germany, France, the Netherlands and Belgium, whose police forces have joined Interpol in what they called “Operation Identify Me.”

This is the first time Interpol publicly broadcasts so-called “black notices,” in which police services that make up the organization exchange information about unidentified bodies and the circumstances of death.

Investigators from different countries believe some of the women came from specific regions of Eastern Europe, so their identification could provide evidence against the crimes’ perpetrators, Interpol said.

“The victim’s identity is often the key to unlocking the mysteries of a case,” Belgian police investigator Carolien Opdecam said in the statement. EFE

rcf/lds