Fourth arrest in body-in-bin probe

Two men and a woman have been held on suspicion of murder after a body was found in an industrial bin in Southampton
9 April 2012

A fourth person has been arrested on suspicion of murder following the discovery of a body in an industrial bin as police examine a theory that the killing took place elsewhere.

The 31-year-old man was arrested by detectives in Southampton. Two men, aged 28 and 25, and a 20-year-old woman who were detained earlier remain in custody. All are from Southampton.

The unidentified body was found by firefighters called to a blaze in the bin on the Empress Road Industrial Estate in the city. The area where the body was found is part of Southampton's red light district.

Detective Inspector Simon Baker, who is leading the murder hunt, said: "We are now working on a theory that the victim was murdered sometime earlier at an address in the Bevois Mews and Earls Road area of Southampton, and moved to the industrial estate, possibly in a wheelie bin.

"The exact route is not known at this stage so our latest appeal is focused on encouraging witnesses to come forward if they noticed any people pushing a wheelie bin in the area of Bevois Mews and Earls Road through to the area of Empress Road Industrial Estate near to Thomas Lewis Way late on Saturday night or early on Sunday morning.

"We would also want to hear from members of the public who may have seen wheelie bins being loaded into a vehicle late on Saturday or early on Sunday morning."

So far police have unable to say whether the victim was male or female, their age or how badly burned the body was.

"A post-mortem examination is continuing to establish the gender and identity of the body, and the cause of death. The results are not expected to be known today due to the condition of the body after it was affected by fire," the detective said.

"A dedicated team of officers are conducting further searches and a forensic examination of an address in the Bevois Mews and Earls Road area, and at the scene where the body was found on the Empress Road Industrial Estate.

"Routine house-to-house and CCTV inquiries are also under way in the local community."

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