‘Flower Tattoo’ Helps Cops Identify UK Woman 31 Years After Her Murder

Rita Roberts, found lying against a grate in a river in Antwerp on June 3, 1992, had a tattoo of a black flower with green leaves and the inscription “R’Nick” on her right forearm.

Lyon, France: 

A woman found murdered 31 years ago in a river in Belgium has been identified over three decades later thanks to her flower tattoo and an international appeal, Interpol said on Tuesday.

The Lyon-based global police organisation said she was Rita Roberts, a British national.

Rita Roberts, found lying against a grate in a river in Antwerp on June 3, 1992, had a tattoo of a black flower with green leaves and the inscription “R’Nick” on her right forearm.

“A family member in the United Kingdom recognised the tattoo on the news and notified Interpol and Belgian authorities,” it said in a statement.

The breakthrough followed an international appeal on Interpol’s Identify Me web page where police share previously confidential information about unsolved cases hoping for input from the public.

Thanks to the page, launched in May this year, 22 women found dead in recent decades in Germany, Belgium and the Netherlands have been identified, Interpol said.