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Woman killed in footpath attack 'may have been targeted for Muslim dress' Woman killed in footpath attack 'may have been targeted for Muslim dress'
(about 1 hour later)
A woman who died after being attacked on a footpath may have been targeted because of her Muslim dress, police have said. Detectives investigating the brutal stabbing of a university student in Essex believe she may have been targeted because she was wearing traditional Islamic dress.
The woman, who was in her early 30s, was walking on the Salary Brook trail in Colchester when the incident happened at 10.40am on Tuesday. Paramedics tried to save her but she died at the scene from head and body injuries. The woman, a Saudi Arabian national in her early 30s, was knifed to death as she walked alone on a quiet footpath in Colchester on Tuesday morning.
Essex police confirmed she was wearing a dark navy blue abaya, or full-length robe, and a patterned multicoloured hijab headscarf. Police said the woman was wearing a patterned headscarf and a dark navy head-to-toe robe, known as an Abaya, during the frenzied attack, which took place in broad daylight near a nursery.
A 52-year-old man from the Colchester area was arrested on Tuesday night in connection with the incident. DS Tracy Hawkings said officers were keeping an open mind about the motive of the attack. A man, 52, was being questioned by police in connection with the murder as detectives said they believe the woman may have been targeted due to her religious clothing.
However, she added: "We are conscious that the dress of the victim will have identified her as likely being a Muslim, and this is one of the main lines of the investigation. But, again, there is no firm evidence at this time that she was targeted because of her religion." Detective Superintendent Tracy Hawkings said police were keeping an open mind on the motive for the attack, but added: "We are conscious that the dress of the victim will have identified her as likely being a Muslim and this is one of the main lines of the investigation but again there is no firm evidence at this time that she was targeted because of her religion."
Detectives want to hear from anyone who used the trail between 8.30am and 11am that day. They have also asked residents to check their gardens and rubbish bins for any discarded weapons or bloodstained clothing. The woman, a student at the University of Essex, suffered severe facial injuries and stab wounds to her body before she was discovered by a member of the public on a quiet footpath near Avon Way.
The victim is believed to have left her home in nearby Woodrow Way before joining the path shortly before her death. The Saudi Arabian embassy confirmed its ambassador to the UK was taking an active role in the case. The embassy said: "Prince Mohammed bin Nawaf expressed in a telephone call on Tuesday to the brother of the deceased his sincerest condolences to her family, affirming the embassy's speed in taking all the procedures for the transfer of the body of the deceased to the Kingdom. He also asserted that the case is in his personal attention."
Hawkings said: "We have not yet been able to formally identify the victim, but we believe we know who she is and specially trained family liaison officers are speaking with her family now. A forensic postmortem is due to be carried out this afternoon to establish the cause of death, but at this time it would appear that a knife or other bladed weapon was used in this attack. Uniformed officers have stepped up their patrols around the site of the stabbing, which took place between 8.30am and 11am near St Andrew's infant and nursery school.
"The victim also suffered facial injuries, but the cause of these has yet to be established. We have no further detail on the murder weapon, or weapons, at this time. If anyone comes across any suspicious items which they think could be connected to this murder, we would ask them to call us." Melody Lowe, the school's headteacher, said she had urged all children to be picked up by a relative or close family friend as a precaution following the attack. "We have issued advice to all children to be picked up by an adult who is known to them," she said. "We're a very inclusive school with 18 languages spoken so we wouldn't limit this advice [to children wearing tradition Islamic clothing], we offer the guidance to all children. We have a very good relationship with the police."
Officers are looking at possible links with the murder of James Attfield, a vulnerable man with brain damage who died after being stabbed more than 100 times at a park in Colchester in March. The fatal attack comes only three months after James Attfield, 33, was murdered in nearby Castle Park. Detectives said there were "immediate similarities" between the latest attack and that on Attfield, who died on 29 March after being stabbed more than 100 times.
"There are some immediate similarities between this murder and that of James Attfield, but there are also a large number of differences as well," she said. Reverend Hilary Le Seve, a vicar at the nearby St Andrew's church, said: "Obviously it's a tragic event and it's tragic for all the friends and the family of this woman, and that's where our heart is, to her friends and family. Most of us live very peacefully in this area and nobody likes this to happen."
"There is no current known motive for this attack and we are keeping an open mind, exploring all possible avenues of investigation." Det Supt Hawkings said: "A forensic postmortem is due to be carried out this afternoon to establish the cause of death but at this time it would appear that a knife or other bladed weapon was used in this attack.
Officers will be carrying out additional patrols in the area. "We have no further detail on the murder weapon or weapons at this time but if anyone comes across any suspicious items which they think could be connected to this murder we would ask them to call us."
Police asked anyone that could assist the enquiry to contact the major investigation team on 01245 282103, telephone Essex police on 101 or call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.