Murder charge in slaying of Oakland native on Crete
A Greek man was charged with murder Tuesday after the disappearance and death of an American scientist on the island of Crete last week, according to multiple reports.
Oakland native Suzanne Eaton, 59, disappeared July 2 while attending a conference in Chania, Crete. Police found her body July 8 in a World War II bunker, and an autopsy revealed she had broken ribs, facial bones and injuries to both hands, according to the Associated Press.
The 27yearold suspect, who has not been identified, was charged with murder and rape and confessed the crime to investigators, according to the Associated Press. A Crete police spokeswoman told the media outlet that he admitted hitting Suzanne Eaton with his car twice with the intent “to commit sexual assault.”
He allegedly placed Eaton’s body in his trunk, drove to a war tunnel and, after raping her, abandoned her body in a ventilation drain, according to the Associated Press.
Eaton, an avid athlete, was believed to have gone for a run on the afternoon of July 2. Eaton’s colleagues at the conference became alarmed when she didn’t show up for a talk she had planned to attend that afternoon, as well as the next morning’s session. She also didn’t go to an afternoon cycling appointment with a friend the next day.
Following her disappearance, Eaton’s family created a Facebook page to post updates about the search for her and theories about her disappearance.
The molecular biologist was born in Oakland and received a doctorate in microbiology from UCLA and conducted research in developmental biology at UCSF between 1988 and 1993. While at UCSF, she met her husband, British scientist Anthony Hyman. In 2000, Eaton moved to Dresden, Germany, where she has since worked as a research leader at the Max Planck Institute of Molecular Cell Biology and Genetics.
“Suzanne was an outstanding scientist and a wonderful human being. She has been a key person, an essential pillar of the institute right from its very beginning,” said Martin Stratmann, president of the Max Planck Society.
He added that the organization “will forever remember Suzanne for all she contributed to our community and far beyond.”
A public memorial page included tributes from Eaton’s family, friends and colleagues, all of whom remembered her as an accomplished scientist, pianist and athlete.
“It has been a joy to share her love of books and music, to observe the combination of a certain flamboyancy with a calm, thoughtful, steady personality,” wrote her mother, Glynda. “She was a devoted wife and mother, and dearly loved by her family.”
Eaton’s son, Max, recalled his mom’s love of music and listening to his parents play together.
“I shall forever cherish the memory of lying on the floor, watching and listening to the thing that brought them together,” he wrote.
Eaton’s family declined comment when reached by The Chronicle.