Cypriot woman found dead in Brisbane

Reports say Australian authorities have not ruled out that a Cypriot woman found dead at a busy park was possibly the victim of a brutal rape and murder.

Cypriot-born Ioli Hadjilyra, a 26-year-old woman who had a Greek Cypriot mother and an Australian father, was found dead in Kalinga Park on Wednesday morning by city employees who were conducting routine maintenance.

Hadjilyra’s body was found in the bushes by the rail tracks near a train station overpass. The body was said to have been badly bruised, bloodied, and not fully clothed.

Authorities were not able to quickly identify the body in the first few hours, citing lack of personal belongings such as a wallet or phone. It was not immediately clear whether the young woman might have been the victim of a robbery.

A post mortem is expected to reveal the exact cause of death.

According to police investigators, Hadjilyra was known to frequently catch the train in the area. Her father is in Australia and has given statements to police regarding his daugther's background and habits, while her siblings reportedly reside in a Nicosia suburb in Cyprus. 

Hadjilyra, a dual citizen, lived in a suburb in south Brisbane and was the second youngest of four siblings. She had attended high school in Brisbane before settling down in the city.