The Spanish National Police Resolves the murder of a Ukrainian woman in Malaga
The Spanish Police National has solved the murder of the young woman whose body was found with signs of violence last October near the La Huertecilla industrial estate. Following the identification of the victim as Anastasiia Kovalenco, a 28-year-old Ukrainian reported missing in the capital on September 4, 2023, the investigations by the Homicide Group and the Scientific Police Brigade have led to the arrest of the alleged murderer, the victim’s partner, and two other men accused of covering for him. The main suspect, a 43-year-old Spaniard, is scheduled to testify this Friday, January 26, in the Women’s Violence Court No. 2 in the capital. Before her disappearance, the young woman lived with the alleged murderer in a hut in the El Tarajal area, not far from where the body was found.
Guardia Civil Confirms Identification Despite Decomposition Challenges
After the news was leaked by La Opinión, the Provincial Police Station reported that the advanced state of decomposition of the body greatly hindered its identification. Investigators could finally confirm that it was Anastasiia, whom they had been trying to locate since the Consulate of Ukraine formally reported her disappearance on September 4. However, the National Center for Missing Persons, an agency under the Ministry of the Interior, dates her absence to August 2, a date that aligns more closely with the time of the crime.
Blunt Object and a Knife Used
In fact, the investigation concludes that the woman was murdered by her partner at the beginning of the last month, using a blunt object and a knife. After killing her, he disposed of the body by hiding it in a cane thicket along the Pocapringue Stream, near the La Huertecilla industrial estate. During one of the police searches organized in the area the woman used to frequent, the agents found a body covered with a blanket and branches.
Once identified, investigators focused on the young woman’s usual companions. They traced it back to the alleged perpetrator of the murder, with whom she had “an emotional relationship,” and shared a hut in the El Tarajal area. Two other men, aged 23 and 33, were also arrested for covering up the crime. “These latter individuals would be aware of the murder and, despite being heard in a statement, would have lied and intentionally omitted information in a malicious manner,” explained the police in a statement.
After discrediting the alibis of the suspects, the main suspect confessed to the crime during police questioning.
