Family of Julia James pay tribute to 'fiercely loyal' PCSO

30 April 2021, 16:54 | Updated: 5 May 2021, 07:22

The family of PCSO Julia James have described her as “fiercely loyal”, adding in a statement: “Her loss will be felt by us every moment of every day."

In a statement released by Kent Police on Friday afternoon, Ms James' family said: "There are no words to adequately describe the void left in our lives by the death of our mum.

'She was so much to so many people; a wife, mother, daughter, nanny, sister and a friend.

"Mum was fiercely loyal, she loved with her whole heart and nothing was too much trouble for the people she cared about."

They added: "Her loss will be felt by us every moment of every day. She will be so sorely missed. As a family we are trying to understand how we will navigate our lives without her, it seems an impossible task."

Read more: PCSO Julia James died from 'blunt trauma' to the head, police confirm

Detectives are considering "all possible" motives for the murder Ms James, 53, who was found in Akholt Wood in Snowdown, near Aylesham in Kent, on Tuesday.

She was off duty and not in uniform at the time of her death.

At a press conference in Aylesham, near Canterbury, on Friday, Kent Police Assistant Chief Constable Tom Richards urged members of the public to be "vigilant" and "aware of their surroundings".

He declined to rule out that Ms James was killed by a stranger, someone she came across during her work, someone trying to steal her dog, or as part of a sexual assault.

No arrests have been made and no suspects identified, Mr Richards told reporters.

He would not comment on any potential murder weapon and also declined to say whether detectives had found signs of a struggle.

Ms James's body was found just "a few hundred yards from her house", he said.

Mr Richards said: "We do not at this stage have any identified suspects; we are keeping all options open to us while we fully investigate the circumstances of this matter and try to understand fully what happened.

"We do not at this stage understand the motive."

However, he added that there was "no evidence that any of her possessions were missing".

He took a moment to pay tribute to Ms James, who joined the police in 2008.

Mr Richards said: "She was a hugely devoted, passionate individual who was completely committed to serving the people of Kent. She will be hugely missed and lost by her colleagues.

"My heartfelt thoughts go out to her family, her friends and of course her colleagues."

Mr Richards stressed that the murder was an "awful" but "incredibly rare and isolated" incident.

He said: "I would encourage people to be cautious, to be vigilant, to be aware of their surroundings, to report anything of concern to Kent Police.

"We're very, very interested in that, but, no, I am not specifically advising women, or anyone for that matter, to stay at home or to avoid any particular locations.

"But until we understand exactly what has happened and why it's happened, of course I understand why people would be concerned."