Serial killer link to Celine ruled out

WILL BENNETT

Detectives investigating the murder of Celine Figard, the French student whose naked body was found near Worcester, said yesterday that they did not believe she was the victim of a serial killer.

They also asked the public to look out for a bottle of champagne which Celine, 19, was given during the journey to England.

Detective Chief Superintendent John McCammont, leading the murder inquiry, said: "I would stress that at this stage there is no firm evidence whatsoever to link Celine's murder with any other investigations."

He said he was concerned by press speculation that the murder of Celine, who was beaten around the head and strangled, might be connected with the killings of several other women, most of them prostitutes, and that a serial killer might be responsible.

A three-day meeting of officers from nine police forces, held in December, to discuss the murders, had decided it was "most improbable" that the cases were linked.

He said Celine had been given a bottle of Pascal Chretien champagne as a gift in France on her way to England. He continued: "This particular type of champagne is not exported to anywhere in the world outside France and is not sold in this country. It is a 1993 vintage and only 60,000 bottles have been produced."

He asked anyone who had seen such a bottle to contact the police.