A murder victim known only as ‘the woman with the flower tattoo’ has finally been identified as a British 31-year-old after 30 years, as the hunt for her killer continues.
Rita Roberts was violently murdered before her body was dumped in a river in Antwerp, Belgium, in 1992.
She had moved to Antwerp from Cardiff in February that year and her family last heard from her when they received a postcard in May.
On June 3, her body was discovered floating against the grate of a water treatment plant in the Groot Schijn, near the Ten Eekhovelei. Detectives said it may have been in the water for some time.
She wore striking neon sportswear and her most striking physical feature was a flower tattoo on her left forearm of a black flower with green leaves and ‘R’Nick’ engraved underneath.
She remained nameless for three decades until an international effort to identify her was launched this year, finally allowing her anguished family to say goodbye.
Rita Roberts had moved to Antwerp from Cardiff in February 1992 and her family last heard from her when they received a postcard in May that year.
The 31-year-old’s most notable physical feature was a flower tattoo on her left forearm of a black flower with green leaves and ‘R’Nick’ written underneath.
On June 3, Rita’s body was discovered floating against a grate of a water treatment plant in the Groot Schijn
Rita’s body was found near the Antwerp Sportpaleis event hall in a busy residential and shopping area in the city’s Deurne district.
The river, which runs along the A1 highway, flows from the Provincial Groendomein Rivierenhof towards a water pumping station.
When an appeal was first launched this year to discover her identity, detectives described her as being between 20 and 50 years old, about 170cm tall and of heavy build.
She had a light complexion, medium-length dark hair and was wearing a T-shirt and dark blue Adidas track pants.
Now that she has been identified, Belgian authorities are calling on the public to come forward with any information they have as they continue to search for her killer.
In May this year, an international appeal was launched with Belgian, Dutch and German police working with INTERPOL to try to identify 22 women believed to have been murdered.
The groundbreaking Operation Identify Me marks the first time INTERPOL has made public some details of Black Notices, which share key pieces of information about unidentified bodies.
Although the identities of many of the victims are still unknown, a relative in Britain recognized Rita’s tattoo on the news and came forward online by contacting the International Criminal Police Organization and Belgian authorities.
The family then traveled to meet with investigators in Belgium and formally identified Rita.
“The news was shocking and heartbreaking,” they said in a statement. ‘Our passionate, loving and free-spirited sister was cruelly taken.
‘There are no words to truly express the sadness we felt then and still feel today.
“While the news was difficult to process, we are incredibly grateful to have discovered what happened to Rita.”
Her body was found near the Sportpaleis event hall in Antwerp, near a highway, a park and a busy residential and shopping area
Rita was wearing striking sportswear and neon trainers when she was found dead
The family said that while they continue to miss Rita deeply, they are grateful for the support of the Belgian Missing Persons, Antwerp Police, INTERPOL and Durham Police in Britain.
“This cross-border collaboration has given a missing girl her identity back and allowed her family to know she is at peace,” they said.
‘Rita was a beautiful person who loved to travel. She loved her family, especially her nieces and nephews, and always wanted to have a family of her own.
“She had the ability to light up a room, and wherever she went, she was the life and soul of the party.” We hope that wherever she is now, she is at peace.”
The research fell under the ‘Identify Me’ programme, which started earlier this year and focused on cold cases.
It was set up to help identify 22 suspected female murder victims and has received more than 500 messages and tips from the public, according to INTERPOL.
Secretary General Jürgen Stock said today: ‘After 31 years, an unidentified murdered woman has regained her name and her family has achieved some closure.
“Such cases underscore the critical need to connect police worldwide, especially when it comes to missing persons.
‘We congratulate the authorities in Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands for their leadership in Operation Identify Me. The important work continues.”
INTERPOL is urging the public, especially those who remember a missing friend or family member, to get in touch via their Identify Me portal if they recognize anyone on the site.
The campaign was launched by the International Criminal Police Organization after a forensic investigator pressed for information to solve a 1999 ‘cold case’ in which a woman was found dead in a garbage bin in Amsterdam, shot in the head and chest.
Carina Van Leeuwen brought together European police resources to find answers to 22 separate, long-unsolved cases, some dating back 40 years.