BRASILIA - THE chopped-up body of a 17-year-old British girl allegedly murdered by her Brazilian boyfriend was discovered Thursday in the central Brazilian city of Goiania, police said.

The British embassy in Brazil identified the teenager as Ms Cara Marie Burke, and said it was in contact with her family in London.

Police found the dismembered trunk of her body in a suitcase close to a river, Major Claudio de Oliveira Silva of Goiania's elite police squad told AFP.

The girl's 20-year-old boyfriend, Mohamed D'Ali Carvalho dos Santos, has been arrested, and police said he confessed to the crime.

According to officers, Carvalho dos Santos said he killed Ms Burke to prevent her from telling his family, who also live in London, that he consumed drugs.

His mobile telephone allegedly contained images of the girl when she arrived in Brazil by plane, and later pictures of her cut-up body. One image showed Ms Burke's body with her decapitated head placed on top, Mr Oliveria Silva said.

The secretariat for public security in Goias state said Carvalho dos Santos and Ms Burke were believed to have been living together in Goiania over the past year.

'The crime has signs of premeditation: Mohamed Ali called Cara to his apartment, put the music on high volume and killed her with knife blows. He then took her body to the bathroom and then he went off to a party,' it said.

'It was only the following day he dismembered the girl's body. He took various photos of the chopped-up body with his cellphone's camera, including photos like those of the Taleban, where the decapitated head is placed on top of the body,' it said.

Ms Burke's family in Britain was said to have recognised the victim from television images broadcast late Wednesday that showed the trunk found in the suitcase. They recognised a tattoo on the body, the secretariat said.

Carvalho dos Santos allegedly told police he put the arms, legs and head of the girl in a separate bag that he threw in the river in a different location.

Authorities on Thursday were conducting a search for that bag. -- AFP

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