mobyt/crime

Police exhume headless man's body.
The headless body of a man is being exhumed from a cemetery by police in West Sussex reinvestigating an 18-year-old unsolved murder.

The unidentified middle-aged man was murdered in 1991 and buried at Western Road cemetery in Haywards Heath.

Police said they hoped scientific advances could help identify the man and potentially identify the offenders.

His body was discovered by a member of the public in woodland near the London to Brighton A23 road in Bolney.

Detectives said his head and both his hands had been removed to mask his identity.

They believed he could have been driven from London before being dumped in heavy undergrowth in October 1991.

The victim was described as being aged in his 50s and about 5ft 10in tall. He was wearing a blue shirt with an eagle motif and stone-coloured trousers.

At the time, police said they were seeking the driver of a grey estate car who had been seen in the area.

He was described as "Scandinavian-looking" and in his 30s.

Case reviewed

Despite numerous police appeals, the identity of the man was never discovered, and he was buried in 1994.

Speaking on Tuesday, Det Ch Insp Andy Griffiths said the exhumation was being conducted in a "respectful and sensitive manner".

This case has been reviewed, as are all unsolved cases periodically, in an effort to establish if new techniques may be brought to bear.

"Following discussions with senior scientists, I made a decision to apply to the relevant authorities for permission to exhume the body, as it appears that re-examination of the body, utilising techniques that did not exist in 1991, may assist us in identifying the man," he said.

West Sussex coroner Penelope Schofield said she issued a warrant under Section 23 of the Coroners' Act 1988 to exhume the body.

She said: "The warrant was issued after the coroner considered evidence from Det Ch Insp Andrew Griffiths of Sussex Police of new scientific opportunities that are now available that could assist the police in identifying the deceased.

"This would enable the police to take further their enquiries into this murder investigation.

"Once the body is exhumed it remains under the control of the coroner until it is reinterred pursuant to a new burial order."

The exhumation and re-interment is likely to continue until Thursday.

Sussex headless body