Woman froze to death in Hull cemetery after cycling accident, despite police search day before

Not only was she in pain but she was on her own too, brother says

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A woman froze to death in a cemetery overnight after a cycling accident, despite being spotted alive the day before by a passer-by who alerted the police.

The body of Jacqueline Parsons was discovered by a dog walker in Western Cemetery in Hull last Sunday morning.

On Saturday afternoon, a passer-by spoke to the 56-year-old after she fell off her bike, according to the Hull Daily Mail. He later called police, who dispatched two officers to search the area.

They were unable to find her, however. She is believed to have found shelter under a tree using her bike as a crutch.

A post-mortem confirmed she died of hypothermia.

“It is bad enough to find out that I had lost a sister, and after hearing that you just hope that there was no pain,” said her brother Rob Parsons. “Then we found out that not only was she in pain but she was on her own too.

“She was a very nice girl and she should have been on holiday now. She was due to go away last Wednesday with her sister and her family but instead she was on a slab in the mortuary.”

Mr Parsons said he was contacted by the passerby, who told him his sister had been “complaining about her leg” and “was in a lot of pain” and shouting for help.

He added: “The passer-by asked her if she wanted him to call an ambulance and she said, ‘No I want help'. He left her there and went home and the way I’ve heard it is that it was an hour and a half before he called the police.”

Humberside police confirmed they received a call on Saturday afternoon over reports of a woman in distress in the cemetery, adding in a statement: “A post-mortem has since been carried out and the woman’s death is not being treated as suspicious.

“We are linking the two calls together. We are now acting on behalf of HM Coroner to gather evidence on their behalf.

“We want to offer our condolences to the woman’s family at this difficult time.”

The spokesperson added that the case had been referred to the Independent Office for Police Conduct, which oversees the complaints system. They said a “full assessment and investigation” was now being carried out.