National bid to solve ID riddle in murder probe

MISSING PERSONS CHECK AMID THEORY BODY PARTS DISPOSED OF IN RIVER

- MAISIE LAWTON AND NEAL KEELING

A NATIONAL check of missing persons is being carried out by detectives trying to solve the mystery of human remains found at a nature reserve.

A murder investigation was launched after the discovery was made at the Kersal Wetlands in Salford on Thursday afternoon.

A member of the public found part of a man's lower body wrapped in multiple layers of Cellophane near Radford Street. The victim has not been identified, though he is thought to be 'older than 40' and 'has only been dead for a matter of days' officers said.

Police are still trying to establish the ethnicity of the victim as well as his identity. One possibility is that other body parts may have been disposed of in the nearby River Irwell and underwater search units have now been deployed.

A 20-year-old man from the local area was arrested on suspicion of murder on Saturday evening, and has remained in custody for questioning.

Throughout yesterday, crime scene investigators in white suits and detectives were seen conducting inquiries at the scene of the nature reserve.

The specialist Tactical Aid Unit officers scoured and navigated through the wetlands equipped with hiking gear.