A 28-year-old man is due to go on trial on Crete Oct. 14 for the killing of American scientist Suzanne Eaton, who was hit by a car, abducted and raped before being murdered on July 2, 2019.

Yiannis Paraskaki had confessed under police questioning, saying he was motivated by sexual satisfaction and after five other women said he'd tried to to the same to them, no explanation from police why he hadn't been caught before.

Eaton, 59, a molecular biologist, was in Crete for the conference and is believed to have gone for a walk or jog before disappearing, with a massive hunt trying to find her before her body was discovered six days later in the ventilation drain of an abandoned World War II bunker outside the port city of Chania.

In this undated photo provided by her family, showing Suzanne Eaton, a 59-year-old molecular biologist. (AP Photo)

Paraskakis said he deliberately hit Eaton twice with his car, put her in his trunk, and abducted her and tried to scrub his vehicle of evidence, authorities said after his arrest, NBC News said at the time.

An autopsy showed Eaton died from suffocation and had multiple broken bones in her ribs and face, and injuries to her hands.

She worked at the Max Planck Institute in Dresden, Germany, which described her as a leading scientist in her field.

"Suzanne was an outstanding and inspiring scientist, a loving spouse and mother, an athlete as well as a truly wonderful person beloved to us all," the institute said. "Her loss is unbearable."

Julie Broaddus Eaton, center, sister of the American scientist Suzanne Eaton, who was raped and killed in Crete last year, stands outside the court room on the first day of the trial in Rethymno, on the Greek island of Crete, Tuesday, Oct. 13, 2020. (AP Photo/Giannis Angelakis)

An inquest finished in June where lawyers for the family issued their plea for justice and remembrance of her esteemed life and lashed out at the confessed killer who they said deprived her of the opportunity to live, plunging her family and relatives into immense sorrow."

The doctors who examined him "determined he was entirely aware of the inhumane actions he perpetrated" and "were astounded by his apathy, coldness and cynicism," the two lawyers said.

The statement added that "several local women in Crete bravely came forward to testify at police and the court" that the perpetrator consistently staged fake car accidents to immobilize women and attack them sexually for his gratification.