Woman found dead in bin bag was malnourished

A woman who was found dead in a bin bag in a park was aged between 60 and 80 and was malnourished, detectives have said.

A murder inquiry was launched after the woman's body was discovered in Stanley Park in Anfield, Liverpool on 28 August.

A month on, Merseyside Police, who have not disclosed the cause of the woman's death, said the victim had no teeth and had several medical conditions, including Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD).

Det Supt Rachel Wilson appealed for the public's help to find out who she is, adding: "We are really keen on identifying her and giving her a name as she has been the victim of a horrendous murder."

She said the woman had several medical conditions, such as osteoporosis and arthritis as well as COPD, and added that she was malnourished at the time of her death.

"We don't know whether that's through neglect or whether that's her age but clearly this woman when she was alive had vulnerabilities," she said.

Wilson said detectives were "keeping our options open" in regard to where the woman and the killer, or killers, were from.

She said the team was getting support from the National Crime Agency and the national Missing Persons Unit.

"We are looking at Anfield and beyond. We have made inquiries with people that are outside of the Merseyside region," she said.

"We just don't know at this stage."

Wilson said although they had a DNA profile from the woman she is not on the UK's national database.

Detectives have also been unable to use dental records to identify her because she had no teeth.

Wilson said it was a "complex investigation" and investigators had now spoken to more than 900 people in the local area and eliminated 126 women from the inquiry.

Police have previously described the woman as white, approximately 5ft 2in (1.57m) tall, and aged about 70 but they have now widened this out to between 60 and 80 years old.

She had a slight build, strawberry blonde hair and was wearing a distinctive cerise pink Nike T-shirt.

Police previously released an image of a similar garment in the hope that it would help someone recognise her.

A month on, Wilson further appealed for anyone to come forward if they had any concerns about a woman matching the description - particularly in relation to no teeth top or bottom, potentially between the age of 60 and 80, who suffers with osteoporosis, arthritis and COPD.

A pink suitcase recovered from the park has now been ruled out of the investigation.

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