Man arrested after woman's body found in pool of blood in Berkshire

A 28-year-old man has been arrested after a woman's body was found in a pool of blood in an underpass.

Officers were called to an address in Bay Drive, Bullbrook, Bracknell, Berkshire, just before 8am today where the body of the 43-year-old woman, who was from the local area, was discovered.

She was declared dead at the scene by paramedics, according to Thames Valley Police.

The arrested man, who is from Bracknell, is to be questioned by detectives.

Brothers Lee Paul-Ferris, 26, and Glenn Paul-Ferris, 22, called the police after encountering the body of the woman, whom they described as being "Oriental" in appearance.

The pair, who work as gardeners and were loading up their van, ran into the underpass after another man discovered the body at 8am.

Lee, a father-of-four, said it was clear the woman had been attacked, saying that her head was in a pool of blood with blood spatters on the wall.

He said: "She had definitely been attacked.

"She was on the floor and her hand was near a glass bottle which wasn't broken.

"It looked like she had been drinking it, maybe pear cider or maybe a wine bottle.

"I was a bit shaken, but all right.

"We went jogging up when we heard there was a body there as a man appeared and asked if we had a mobile.

"She was on the floor and there was blood on the wall and blood all over the place.

"I couldn't tell where the blood was coming from - she was sort of covering her face and in the foetal position, more face down.

"She was wearing a black leather jacket, a black dress and black knee high boots and looked Oriental."

The brothers said they had not seen the woman before.

Mr Paul-Ferris added: "We recognise most people but haven't seen her before around here.

"The blood was about 18 inches up the wall and it looked like she'd bled out of some wound - most of the blood was on the floor and there was a pool of blood around her head.

"Around the outside edge it looked dry but was quite moist in the middle - I would say she had been there for a while.

"Her hair was over her face and I couldn't see if she had been stabbed in the neck.

"We were only there for a couple of minutes and about a yard away from her.

"The police arrived quickly and took a statement."

Superintendent Paul Hayles said: "The woman was found at an underpass near Bay Drive and we are yet to determine the circumstances of her death.

"We would urge anyone who was in or around the area in the early hours of this morning and may have seen anything to please contact us as a matter of urgency."

Nearby roads were closed and a large cordon was in place restricting access to the underpass to enable specialist police officers to examine the scene. This afternoon, a private ambulance arrived and removed the body.

The crime scene is close to a large collection of business units as well as an estate where residents spoke of their shock.

One woman, who did not want to be named, said she would not let her two teenage daughters out at night by themselves now.

PA