Australian scientist killed in Argentina remembered as a 'beautiful person'
An academic from New South Wales who was found dead in Argentina has been described by her heartbroken partner as having “the soul of an angel”.
Lily Pereg’s body was found in a shallow grave, along with her sister, more than a week after they went missing. Her nephew has been charged with murdering them both.
Seven News spoke to Professor Pereg’s partner John Finlay, who held back tears as he spoke of the love of his life.
For two weeks Mr Finlay had been in Argentina, searching for Prof Pereg.
He never imagined he’d be returning to their Armidale property without her.
“Lily was a beautiful person, she had the soul of an angel,” he said. “She never said no to anybody, she was always going to help someone.”
Prof Pereg, 54, had lectured at the University of New England for 18 years, specialising in microbiology.
She was a renowned scholar both locally and internationally, and had recently been promoted to professor.
“She’d worked really hard for it,” Mr Finlay said.
In a cruel twist, Lily had gone to Mendoza, a city in Argentina’s wine country, to help her beloved older sister Pyrhia Sarussi, 63.
The women vanished about January 11 after travelling to Mendoza to visit Pyrhia’s son Gilad Pereg, 36, who later reported them missing.
He had then appeared on local television asking for the public’s help.
The women’s bodies were discovered in a shallow grave next to his home.
Autopsy results showed at least one of the women was shot.
Gilad Pereg was arrested on Friday and formally charged a day later with the aggravated homicide of his mother and the simple homicide of his aunt following the discovery.
Academic held in ‘high esteem’
Prof Pereg obtained a PhD from the University of Sydney in 1998 and later worked for the Institute for Genetics at the University of Cologne in Germany before joining UNE in 2001.
On Monday, The University of New England released a statement saying the community was shocked and saddened by Prof Pereg’s death “while holidaying in Mendoza”, and expressed heartfelt condolences to all of those affected.
“(She) was held in high esteem by her colleagues and students as a committed and dedicated academic,” the statement reads.
“She was acknowledged nationally and internationally as a leading scholar in the fields of soil microbial ecology and plant-microbial interactions.”
– with AAP
