Found Deceased Greece - Dr. Suzanne Eaton, 60, American, gone for a run, Crete, 2 Jul 2019 *ARREST*

[glassheater]

After seeing these photos, I’m pretty sure the key to the rooms was a traditional key.

 

[glassheater]

Also, I believe the area in yellow are the rooms to sleep in. Perhaps that’s why nobody saw her exit.

 

[glassheater]

Some questions answered here:

She normally runs about 5k a day

She’s attended this conference for 5 years, familiar with the area

Doesn’t carry a water bottle, watch, or headphones when she runs

Missing Pieces Network

It's possible her killer knew her, but I'm not sure. I think it must be someone with knowledge of the island to find that cave. There's too much unknown info right now. AFAIK, no one saw her going for a run. We only know that her running shoes were missing from her room. What I'm interested in is-- how often did Crete host this conference she attended? Had she been there for the conference before? Did she know any of the people who were hosting her at the OAC? Were any of the other scientists at the conference locals to Crete? What were her interactions like with the staff there? What was her interaction with the other scientists? Had she shown an interest in exploring Crete's history? Perhaps someone offered to take her on a sight-seeing tour of the island during her break and used that to lure her to the cave? Too much is unknown at this point.

PS: I briefly considered this might be suicide but tossed that idea aside once I saw the you tube video of the cave someone posted in this thread. I don't know how she would have found that cave on her own and I can't imagine wanting to go inside it alone.

MOO.

She’s attended the conference now for 5 years.

 

[Gardener1850]

She’s attended the conference now for 5 years.

Very interesting, thank you for finding that info. So she was likely comfortable there and probably felt she knew the people and the place well after 5 years of visiting there. Perhaps she trusted the wrong person. Given her possible knowledge of the island from prior visits, I may re-think the possibility of suicide or an accident/natural death while she went exploring, but I would need an explanation on how she got to the cave. I can't imagine her running 10 K to the cave without being seen by multiple people. And it was a very hot and humid day. Not a good day to choose to run 4 times as far as she normally would go.

MOO.

 

[glassheater]

Sorry to clog up the thread. I’ll stop after this, the other reason I suspect it may of been someone she knew is because she wasn’t seen on the surveillance video like the day before. When you only have a short time to run and don’t have your phone as GPS or a watch for time, it would make sense to go on a route that you’ve taken before and know the approximate time to complete. The monastery with surveillance is only one minute away from the OAC.

 

[Gardener1850]

A good map:

The body of an American scientist has been found in a Nazi bunker on Crete, Greece, according to local news outlets.

Greek authorities had a tough time accessing the body of Suzanne Eaton, 59, on Monday evening on a rocky patch near the settlement of Xamoudochori and the recovery effort was still not complete by Tuesday afternoon.

The Oklahoma woman's body was found face down a few meters into the cave that is difficult to reach on foot, nearly a week after she vanished at some point between 3pm and 5pm on July 2, it was reported. It's possible she may have reached the location in a vehicle, FlashNews.gr reported.

The body was clothed in items known to belong to her, although it's not known what state she was dressed in. Authorities have not speculated and have not ruled out foul play.

The location is about six miles from where she was last seen playing piano in the lobby of the Orthodox Academy of Crete in Kolympari, where she was staying.

Eaton – who was a research leader at the Max Planck Institute of Molecular Cell Biology and Genetics in Dresden, Germany - was on the trip to attend a conference.

The Hellenic Police has not yet revealed details of how Eaton - who is married to British scientist Dr. Anthony Hyman, 57 - and lived in Germany for 25 years, died.

Relatives had said they believe she may have became overheated in the 88-degree temperatures and taken shelter where she suffered a medical emergency.

Prominent US molecular biologist missing in Greece is found dead in Nazi bunker after going for run | Daily Mail Online

Interesting that relatives are speculating she had a medical emergency. Also, I didn't realize that her husband is also a scientist. Was he at the conference with her? If not, had he attended in the past?

 

[CityDancer]

If this was an accident, where a car accidentally hit her while she was jogging on a road (was she jogging on a road?), wouldn't the Greek courts recognize that it was an unavoidable accident? Hiding the body is dumb, but the courts should recognize that - especially now that the body has been found. The injuries will be consistent with a car accident, unavoidable when people run on busy windy roads.

If this is a road accident, there is a good explanation for the type of injuries to the body, and maybe there's an explanation for hiding the body. For example, the driver might be thinking that hiding the body is the best idea to avoid the wrath of the USA, where a road accident becomes an international incident?

Again taking into account the somewhat wild local drinking culture (the drinking of raki and tsikoudia very often starts in the morning) perhaps he panicked that he would be facing heavy penalties. Take what this article says and multiply it by ten to apply to Crete, people there drink A LOT, but never in an aggressive or stumbling-drunk kind of way, in fact it's considered a serious badge of honour and 'manliness' to be able to hold your liquor. Of course you're not supposed to drive when drunk, and the Greek law is very strict about it. Drinking in Greece • Greek Landscapes

 

[CityDancer]

Interesting that relatives are speculating she had a medical emergency. Also, I didn't realize that her husband is also a scientist. Was he at the conference with her? If not, had he attended in the past?

I believe her husband was not with her. He arrived on the island, along with their two sons and other relatives, a couple of days after her disappearance.

 

[Elainera]

Greek authorities had a tough time accessing the body of Suzanne Eaton, 59, on Monday evening on a rocky patch near the settlement of Xamoudochori and the recovery effort was still not complete by Tuesday afternoon.

The Oklahoma woman's body was found face down a few meters into the cave that is difficult to reach on foot,

After reading this (thanks Gardener!) I can't imagine she walked/jogged to the cave and into it by herself, and in the heat too! This was no medical emergency imo. Somebody killed her and dumped her there, hoping she wouldn't be found for a long time. Likely someone local who knew her, knew her routine. jmo

What could be the motive though? Extorting money perhaps? Or maybe sexual?

Very sad.

 

[Gardener1850]

Interesting article on the German company Suzanne worked for:

5 July 2019

A high proportion of foreign scientific personnel at institutes belonging to the Max Planck Society (MPS) in Germany feel that they are being ignored or excluded. That is according to a survey commissioned by the society, which also found that bullying and sexual discrimination occur regularly within MPS institutions.

The MPS, which conducts basic science, consists of 84 world-leading scientific institutes, five of which are outside of Germany. Of the over 23 000 staff that the MPS employs, around a third are scientists. About 30% of all employees are from outside Germany with 40% of its directors, 50% of its PhDs and 75% of its postdocs coming from abroad.

The survey was commissioned by the MPS following allegations last year of bullying at two MPS institutes – the Max Planck Institute for Astrophysics in Garching and the Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences in Leipzig. The survey was conducted in February and March by an independent research team from the Fraunhofer Center for Responsible Research and Innovation in Berlin. Some 12 349 MPS staff members participated in the survey with responses from 9078 participants deemed valid enough to be included in the analysis.

Read more: https://physicsworld.com/a/up-to-half-of-foreign-scientists-at-max-planck-institutes-feel-excluded/

 

[Gardener1850]

Jul 9, 2019

Searchers on Tuesday said they had found Eaton's body in an abandoned World War II bunker around 7 miles from where she had been staying. Vangelis Zacharioudakis, who led the search effort by the Hellenic Rescue Team, told ABC News on Tuesday that the body was Eaton's.

"The road leading to the place where the woman was found is accessible, covered with cement and in the area there are many villas in which tourists stay. There are many people going out there and especially tourists who go either by hiking or to go to the villas where they have rented rooms. It is an amphitheatrical area where many tourists pass by daily," Konstantinos Beblidakis, the vice mayor of the local Platanias municipality, said in a statement.

[...]

Police have not commented on what might have caused Eaton's death, and her institute said they had been informed the investigation was still underway to establish what had happened.

Detectives from Athens were traveling to Crete to assist, The Associated Press reported. Her body has been sent to the town of Rethymno on Crete for an autopsy.

Read more: Missing American scientist found dead in abandoned WWII bunker in Greece

Detectives traveling from Athens tells me this is a serious investigation and probably not thought to be a sudden medical incident.

MOO.

 

[Handsome Sailor]

Sexual assault ala Molly in Iowa?

 

[CityDancer]

Still trying to get a sense of the bigger picture ...

• 2 July 2019, last contact Tuesday afternoon (4:30pm?)
  
• 8 July 2019, body found, evening
• body 10km from last contact location
• body a few meters inside an artificial cave, a former German bunker
• laying on belly/face
• head and maybe body was covered, unknown
• outstanding and inspiring scientist, loving spouse, mother, athlete, beloved, deceased

• the case is treated as a "criminal act"
• it is certain that the 60-year-old lost her life elsewhere and was transferred to the cave by those involved

It was specified on Greek media that her clothes were not torn or ripped, which imo would have been more consistent with the actions of a serial killer. The autopsy results are due in a couple of hours and we'll know more when they become available. Also her profile was probably not consistent with a typical sk's victim's profile.

Her last contact on 2 July was at around 3 pm, there was a recess at the conference between 3-6 pm, and she was last seen playing the piano in the conference hall right at the start of the recess.

This is the exact spot where she was found (1st video shows the entrance to the maze, 2nd video shows the actual tunnel), she was found 60 meters in. This to me sounds weird. She was supposedly discovered because of the foul smell but would a decomposition smell coming from a body that deep inside a tunnel emanate to someone randomly walking outside? Χανιά: Σε αυτό το καλά κρυμμένο σημείο βρέθηκε η σορός της Suzanne Eaton (φωτο-βίντεο)

 

[Handsome Sailor]

I have seen plenty of Greeks drunk in public in my time there. They like there little motor scooters too, and drive them incautiously.

 

[Handsome Sailor]

A yearly conference. That means she was known to the locals for at least 5 years. And for 59, she looks much younger. I find it hard to believe she'd go for a jog in a pink skirt. Her routine must have been well known. I'd start looking into the conference employees, and also, determine which locals have left the island suddenly in the last few days on a ferry to athens

 

[Elainera]

She was supposedly discovered because of the foul smell but would a decomposition smell coming from a body that deep inside a tunnel emanate to someone randomly walking outside?

Yes I think it's possible. In these temperatures decomp starts and progresses rapidly. It's a strong smell you can't help but notice even from far away. The tunnels would have even acted like a funnel, concentrating the smell.

Note: apologies for my double post above. I noticed it too late and wasn't able to edit anymore.

 

[Curiousobserver]

It was specified on Greek media that her clothes were not torn or ripped, which imo would have been more consistent with the actions of a serial killer. The autopsy results are due in a couple of hours and we'll know more when they become available. Also her profile was probably not consistent with a typical sk's victim's profile.

Her last contact on 2 July was at around 3 pm, there was a recess at the conference between 3-6 pm, and she was last seen playing the piano in the conference hall right at the start of the recess.

This is the exact spot where she was found (1st video shows the entrance to the maze, 2nd video shows the actual tunnel), she was found 60 meters in. This to me sounds weird. She was supposedly discovered because of the foul smell but would a decomposition smell coming from a body that deep inside a tunnel emanate to someone randomly walking outside? Χανιά: Σε αυτό το καλά κρυμμένο σημείο βρέθηκε η σορός της Suzanne Eaton (φωτο-βίντεο)

The rugged structure of the cave suggests to me more than one person carried her in. I think you would have hard time dragging a person 60M in, or carrying someone over your shoulder.

 

[CityDancer]

The rugged structure of the cave suggests to me more than one person carried her in. I think you would have hard time dragging a person 60M in, or carrying someone over your shoulder.

Correct. There's also the possibility someone took her there alive and killed her inside the cave. No blood was found but he could have strangled her, though that would probably point to a sexual/personal motive.

 

[Elainera]

Correct. There's also the possibility someone took her there alive and killed her inside the cave. No blood was found but he could have strangled her, though that would probably point to a sexual/personal motive.

I was just thinking the same but didn't police state that they believe she died elsewhere?

 

[CityDancer]

I was just thinking the same but didn't police state that they believe she died elsewhere?

The police are releasing very little information and the family may also have been advised to say as little as possible, based on the statement they made on the "Searching for Suzanne" group/page on Facebook. Until the autopsy's complete it's very hard to tell how she got there and what happened.