British Man Arrested in Ecuador Accused of Hiding Woman's Body in Suitcase

Ecuadorian authorities have arrested a British national, Matthew Ashley Foster Smith, in connection with the death of a woman whose body was found hidden inside a suitcase. The suspect is accused of killing 36-year-old Natalia Villalba.

Colombian authorities stated that Villalba was allegedly beaten to death in a Bogotá apartment on June 18. Foster Smith, 46, was apprehended at Quito airport in Ecuador. He had reportedly told the British newspaper The Sun that he was watching England's football match against Croatia at the time of the alleged crime.

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I was watching the England vs Croatia match on a big screen in an Irish pub, so I wasn't the perpetrator.

"I was watching the England vs Croatia match on a big screen in an Irish pub, so I wasn't the perpetrator," Foster Smith told The Sun. He added that after the match, he went to a shopping center for ice cream before returning to watch more games. The England match in question took place on June 17.

Colombian prosecutors indicated on the social platform X that Foster Smith is suspected of beating Villalba to death before placing her body in a suitcase to conceal the crime and flee. British police in Dorset were among the authorities that assisted in locating him before his arrest.

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After the match, I went to a shopping center for ice cream before returning to watch more games.