Only one body found in Cornwall woods, say police after claims of ‘multiple remains’
Police and Crime Commissioner Alison Hernandez has apologised after claiming the remains of multiple people were found in woods at the centre of a murder investigation, when only one body was found.
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Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) Alison Hernandez told a streamed meeting on Friday that multiple bodies had been found in an investigation into the murder of Daniel Coleman.
The commissioner said that "dead bodies" had been found in Paramoor Woods near Sticker, in Cornwall.
She has since apologised "for any alarm this may have caused."
She said: "The police have operational primacy over these matters. Any investigation will unfold rapidly and I was not in possession of all the facts at that time."
Police in Cornwall strongly denied finding multiple dead bodies.
Detective Superintendent Jon Bancroft said: 'We currently have three separate murder investigations in the Cornwall area."
"I have oversight of all of these investigations at this time, and can confirm they are being carried out independently of each other and are not believed to be linked.
"I can categorically state that we have recovered remains believed to be those of Daniel Coleman only from an area of woodland in Sticker. No other remains have been located at this scene to date."
Police found the body of missing Daniel Coleman in Paramoor Woods near Sticker, in Cornwall.
Following the discovery of Mr Coleman's remains, Devon and Cornwall Police continued to scour the wooded area.
James Desborough, 39, has been charged with the murder of Daniel Coleman, 43, who had been missing.
Police and crime commissioner Alison Hernandez told a panel today: "Some of the elements of that operation I can’t speak about but some of the things are very obvious.
"As you know there is a large crime scene that has been identified in Cornwall that is requiring a lot of effort to even scene guard the area.
"The level of expertise, some of the mutual aid we’ve brought in, is expertise in specific types of investigations that we didn’t have."
"The National Crime Agency is supporting the organisation at the moment.
"I want to thank all the other forces that are coming in at a very busy time for themselves to offer mutual aid.
"It’s largely investigative mutual aid that we've brought in.
"Until some of those elements have been established of exactly what we’re dealing with there, it will be made public at that time."
"I know there’s been some information in the media. We’ve got a huge forensic tent down there.
"Lots of forensics officers, obviously we’ve found dead bodies in that wood.
"We’re just trying to establish how many there may be at this point in time and whether we are aware of who they are or what might have happened to them.
"So we also don’t know how long they may have been there, some of them."
The wooded area is located just off the A390 between St Austell and Truro.
Speaking after Desborough was charged with Coleman's murder, Detective Superintendent Jon Bancroft said: "We are continuing with a forensic examination of the scene which is being carried out slowly and methodically.
"Our teams of officers and staff are being assisted by the National Crime Agency expert group and Home Office-approved scientists."
A significant police presence will remain in the Sticker area as we progress our inquiries expeditiously."I continue to ask that people do not speculate on social media about this case."
Desborough is due to appear in court on August 8.