Elisa Claps

Body Of Missing Teen 'Found In Church Roof'
11:53am UK, Thursday March 18, 2010

Nick Pisa, in Rome

A body found hidden in the roof of an Italian church is thought to be that of a teenage girl who went missing 17 years ago.

Elisa Claps was last seen in 1993 in the Italian town of Potenza

The disappearance of 16-year-old Elisa Claps has gripped Italy for almost two decades, with no trace of her ever found.

The mystery even reached England - with the prime suspect in the case now living in Bournemouth.

Danilo Restivo lived in the same Italian town as Elisa and it is alleged he was the last person to see her alive.

He was convicted of perjury in Italy after magistrates did not believe he was telling the truth about his whereabouts on the day Elisa went missing.

In October 2009 the Italian national was sent bullet cartridges in the mail as part of an apparent threat over the teen's disappearance.

Mr Restivo has also been questioned by Dorset detectives in connection with the 2002 murder of housewife Heather Barnett.


From the effects that have been found and positively identified by the family, it would seem that it is the body of Elisa but DNA will give the definitive result.

She was found by her children horribly mutilated in the bedroom of her home, clutching cut strands of someone else's hair.

Police inquiries have focussed on the unidentified bits of hair.

Detectives appealed to women who had noticed some of their hair had been cut off after travelling on public transport to contact them.

No one has ever been charged with Mrs Barnett's killing.

As part of their investigation, Dorset police travelled to Italy to investigate possible links between her death and the disappearance of Elisa.

On Wednesday night, Italian police were called to the Most Holy Trinity Church in Potenza, southern Italy, after workmen found human remains bricked into the roof along with personal effects.

While DNA tests will be carried out to confirm the identity of the remains, family members said a necklace, watch, sandals and glasses found at the scene belonged to Elisa.

"From the effects that have been found and positively identified by the family, it would seem that it is the body of Elisa but DNA will give the definitive result," Potenza police chief Romolo Panico said.

An evening service due to be held at the church was immediately cancelled as forensic scientists arrived to seal off the roof and rest of the building.

Elisa was last seen alive at the church in September 1993 and it had been thoroughly searched at the time, but nothing was ever found.

Italian authorities added they could not rule out that she had been killed elsewhere and her body dumped there as "the roof of a church is the last place you expect to find a corpse".

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I am glad the family now have closure and i hope the culprit faces justice and gets the sentence he deserves.
italian legal cases can take years to progress through the courts ( remember amanda knox) but they are thorough

As you say....at least her family have closure and can give her a decent burial.