Friends of a woman who was found murdered in north London’s Finsbury Park has paid tribute to her, saying they are “heartbroken”.
Iuliana Tudos, whose body was found on Wednesday in an outbuilding in the park, was described as “very kind, fun, life-loving and oh so young”.
The 22-year-old died as a result of a stab wound to the abdomen and a head injury, a post-mortem examination found.
A murder inquiry is now underway, but no arrests have yet been made.
Senya Taylor had known Tudos for about three years after meeting and sharing a love for music.
The Press Association reported that she said: “She was so young and friendly, she could make friends with anyone she met very easily.
“If it wasn’t for her I wouldn’t have met the love of my life too, which I’m forever grateful for.”
Tudos, who police said was of Russian and Greek origin, was last seen by friends at around 8pm on 24 December when she headed for a bus home from Camden.
She was due to meet them at a friend’s home in Enfield, north-east London, later that evening before spending Christmas Day there, but never arrived.
“When I heard (of) her going missing, straight away that rang a bell because no-one I know is more responsible than she is,” said Ms Taylor.
“She couldn’t just disappear. She would always find a way to get in touch or get online or say she’s OK, always insisted to let her know you got home safe too.”
Friends have also paid tribute to Ms Tudos on social media.
“Dear best friend, thank you for being amazing,” wrote Eleni Sakka, alongside a photograph of her with Ms Tudos that she posted on Facebook.
Social media has also helped spread an online fundraising drive to pay for Ms Tudos’s funeral, which reached its £4,000 target within 11 hours.
Neighbour Sebastian Jonathan said: “She was a very nice person, young and gorgeous.
“I met her twice when she came over for beers when we had barbecues last summer.
“The police refused to give me any information, I had to Google it to see that she was the one found in the park.”
Tudos, who called herself “Julie”, was from Moscow and worked at The World’s End pub in Camden, according to her Facebook page and neighbours.
She regularly attended concerts with friends and described herself as a “Camden punk” on her Facebook page.
Tudos, who was 5ft 1in with a slim build, was last seen in Camden Road.
She was wearing a black and red hooded top with Agnostic Front – the name of an American punk band – on it, with light jeans and black and white Vans shoes.
Police said she was wearing glasses and was carrying a black and white fabric bag with “Fighting against Animal Testing” written on it.
He body was found in the park shortly before 4.30pm on Wednesday.
Detective Chief Inspector Nicola Wall, from the Homicide and Major Crime Command, is leading the investigation.
She said: “Iuliana’s body was discovered in an outbuilding next to a sports pitch.
“We believe that she may have been attacked on Saturday December 24 – Christmas Eve – but we want to hear from anyone who saw anything suspicious in that part of Finsbury Park over the Christmas period.
“We are still trying to piece together a timeline of events and are pursuing a number of lines of inquiry as regards to a motive.”
Anyone with information is asked to call the dedicated incident room on 0208 785 8244, tweet @MetCC or contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555111.