Remains found in river are not human, police say

Remains found in the river where the body of Suzanne Blamires was discovered do not belong to two other murdered prostitutes, police said yesterday.

Forensic tests on the matter found in the River Aire at Shipley, West Yorkshire, revealed they were animal and not human. Meanwhile, tests continued on tools discovered in a suitcase pulled out of the river over the weekend.

A spokesman for West Yorkshire Police said: "Further forensic examinations on remains recovered this weekend show they are not human but animal waste which appears to be from food preparation."

Stephen Griffiths, 40, has been charged with murdering Ms Blamires. He is also accused of killing Shelley Armitage and Susan Rushworth, whose bodies have not been found.

The remains were recovered on Friday from the river, a short distance from where the body parts of Ms Blamires had been dumped.

Officers from West Yorkshire Police's Underwater Search Unit were continuing to search the water, and the spokesman said all training exercises had been cancelled for the coming week. Police were also continuing to search areas of Bradford city centre, including examining excavations carried out by utility companies.

Mr Griffiths will appear before Bradford Crown Court on 7 June via a video link from Wakefield Prison.