Interpol, a law enforcement organization, claims that Rita Roberts‘ family noticed her unusual tattoo in a report. In May 1992, the 31-year-old sent her family a postcard as their final communication. The month after, her body was discovered. The news was described as “shocking and heartbreaking” by her family. “They cruelly took away our passionate, loving, free-spirited sister,” they said in a statement released by Interpol. “Despite the difficulty in processing the news, we are incredibly grateful to have learned what happened to Rita.”
On June 3, 1992, the woman was allegedly discovered in a river, lying up against a grate.
According to CBS News, Rita Roberts’s family has “formally identified” her. Her family made the trip to Belgium to meet with detectives. The family expressed their gratitude for discovering Rita’s fate, saying, “Even though the news has been hard to process,”
Interpol launched Operation Identify Me on May 10, 2023, with the aim of identifying the 22 missing women who were discovered dead in the Netherlands, Belgium, and Germany between 1976 and 2019 and solving cold cases throughout Western Europe. Due to their deaths, the majority of the women are unidentified.
Information regarding the woman, who was not identified, was requested to be made public. Interpol, in collaboration with the police forces of the Netherlands, Germany, and Belgium, made available facial reconstructions and additional data utilized during the inquiries. There is a possibility that a few of the women who were killed were from Eastern Europe.
The majority of the victims were in the 15–30 age range. The complete list contains information about the women, photos of potentially identifiable objects, and, in certain cases, updated facial reconstructions and case studies.
Ms Rita Roberts had travelled from her Cardiff, Wales, home to Antwerp, Belgium, in February 1992. Her body was found four months after she was brutally murdered, lying against a grate in a river.
Her family described her as a loving person who cared about them and as “a beautiful person who adored travelling.” They added that she could light up a room and was the life of the party wherever she went. No matter where she is at this moment, we wish her peace.”
According to Stephen Kavanagh, head of Interpol’s police services, she was identified by a family member who saw her tattoo in a BBC News article from May of this year. The word “R’Nick” is inscribed beneath a black flower with green leaves in the tattoo.
“A member of Rita’s family realized there might be a chance that a missing family member had truly been harmed after seeing the Identity Me appeal on the BBC,” the statement reads. Once the family recognized the tattoo and formally identified her, they met with investigators in Belgium.
“This presents a dreadful contradiction,” Mr. Kavanagh declared. “We are saddened for the family, as they lost a loved one in terrible circumstances, but we are also proud that we were able to identify this unfortunate woman, Rita, and collaborate with member nations.” At this time, Ms. Roberts’s family and friends are being urged by Belgian authorities to come forward with any information they may have regarding her.
Since Operation Identify Me began in May, police say they have received about 1,250 tips regarding the 22 women whose bodies were discovered in the Netherlands, Belgium, and Germany. Mr Kavanagh stated that the police were hopeful that the identification of Ms. Roberts was “just the beginning” and that they continued to pursue leads on the remaining 21 cases.
The Dutch police started the campaign because they were having problems identifying a woman whose body was found in 1999 on the outskirts of Amsterdam floating in a river in a wheelie bin. A woman’s body was found in a German sailing club in 2002; it was tied with string and covered in a carpet. This is just one of the other incidents. Every single one of these women had her own unique personality, friends, family, and goals in life. In addition, Mr. Kavanagh stated, “They have all gone through excruciating circumstances.” “As law enforcement personnel worldwide, we now possess the chance to attempt to locate them and provide a resolution.”
