Detectives hunting the killer of the French student Amelie Delagrange have made a significant breakthrough today with the discovery of some of her belongings dumped in the river Thames.
Police divers discovered her purse and keys in the river at Walton-on-Thames, at a location close to the home of another murder victim, schoolgirl Milly Dowler. However, police were quick to rule out any connection to the killing of Milly.
The stretch of river underneath a bridge is 10 to 20 minutes drive from where Amelie was murdered on a cricket pitch at Twickenham Green, south west London at 10pm on Thursday night.
Detective Chief Superintendent Andy Murphy said: “We have found several items, one of which we are confident belongs to Amelie.
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“This is a significant breakthrough because it gives us a new area to focus on.”
He said her Sony Ericsson mobile phone and her brown and mustard coloured handbag had yet to be found.
Mr Murphy appealed for anyone who was in the area around the bridge at 10.20pm on Thursday night to contact police.
He said: “It’s feasible he could have driven from Twickenham to there in a very short space of time.”
A police marine support unit was still at the scene of the find tonight and it is expected to be cordoned off overnight.
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Mlle Delagrange, 22, was bludgeoned to death as she took a short cut home across a cricket pitch on Twickenham Green in southwest London.
Police believe her killer may have been lying in wait for her behind a cricket sight screen. It was revealed yesterday that she was halfway between two screens when she was struck by her attacker.
Detectives believe it is possible that a serial killer obsessed with young blonde women may be on the loose. They are exploring possible links between the latest murder and attacks on three other women, all of whom were blonde.