ISTANBUL, Turkey—On Dec. 29, an 84-year-old Armenian woman was brutally murdered in Istanbul’s Koca Mustafa Pasha neighborhood, Turkish newspapers reported.

The woman, identified as Marissa Kuchuk (Küçük), lived alone. She was found dead by her daughter, Zadik Kuchuk, who was visiting her. She was stabbed seven times and her throat was slit. The perpetrator(s) carved a cross on her chest using a sharp object, according to some Turkish newspaper and TV reports.

An investigation is under way.