Police "confident" of identity for severed head victim
Police identify victim after woman's severed head found on beach in Arbroath
Thursday, 03, Apr 2008 08:10
Police investigating the discovery of a severed head on a beach in Arbroath say they are "confident" they have identified the dead woman.
A statement from Tayside police said the victim was believed to be a 36-year-old woman from Brechin's South Esk Street.
Hundreds of calls were fielded by the force in response to police appeals, with the victim's employer reporting her missing.
Family liaison officers are in the process of contacting her next of kin, Tayside police said.
Detective Chief Inspector Graham McMillan, senior investigating officer, said the flat in question in South Esk Street had been sealed off as officers conduct their searches.
''We will be speaking to a number of people over the course of the day in a bid to establish the woman's last known movements, when she was last seen, and to establish the circumstances of her death," DCI McMillan said.
''Establishing the identity of this woman is the first step in a very complex and detailed enquiry. I would urge anyone who has any information about this investigation to get in touch with us.
''The response to the appeals made in the media to date has been phenomenal and has, without doubt, led to us identifying this woman. I'd like to thank those members of the public who did get in touch for their assistance.''
Tayside police also revealed they had been contacted by coastguard last night after the discovery of "possible human material" at Carnoustie.
The 'items' have been taken to a police mortuary in Dundee where they will be forensically examined.
A police investigation was launched when two children playing on a beach discovered a woman's head in a plastic bag on Monday.
Police later found two disembodied hands on the same stretch of shoreline near Angus town's South Street.