Russian couple murdered in Fiji

A missing Russian couple residing and working in Fiji have been confirmed dead, police said Sunday.

DNA tests conducted have confirmed body remains found washed ashore last week at a beach in Fiji belong to Yuri Shipulin and his wife, Natalia, said Luke Navela, intelligence and investigations chief of the Fiji police.

The couple, from Ryazan City, Russia, had been missing since mid last month. Their car was later found at Natadola Beach in Nadi, Fiji's tourism hub. Items including Natalia's clothes and a passport were found inside the vehicle.

The husband and wife had reportedly been in the Pacific island country for five years and running a farm for two years.

Police are now treating the case as a murder, Navela said, adding that investigations will continue with a new team of divers from the Fiji Navy to assist police divers in the search for other body remains at Natadola waters. Endit