Police get extra time to quiz suspects over Cynthia Beamond murder

The body of 80-year-old Cynthia Beamond was discovered at her Halesowen home on Sunday evening, two days after police initially searched the house.

Officers now have until Wednesday morning to quiz a man, 32, and a woman, 23, on suspicion of the killing.

In a press conference yesterday afternoon, Det Supt Mark Payne said that was because officers would not have been able initially to find her body in a visual search.

He said: "Whoever killed Cynthia went to significant lengths to hide her body.

"We were in the initial stages of the inquiry, treating it as a missing person inquiry, and were looking for her and her car hoping to find her alive.

"We started a thorough and meticulous search of her house, and that has uncovered Cynthia in a location inside the house.

"Officers did originally walk through her house, and did try to find Cynthia, but it wouldn't have been possible to visually see her body."

Mr Payne would not confirm where in the Juliet Road house her body was found, as currently that is 'only known to her murderer'.

Police are considering the possibility that her death was as a result of a burglary that went wrong, but equally that this could be a murder disguised as a burglary.

Mrs Beamond was last seen in Halesowen on Friday morning on a visit to her hairdresser, and was reported missing later that day by her family.

Officers are still searching for Mrs Beamond's car, a silver Vauxhall Astra 1.6 with the registration T419 MDA, and are keen to hear from anyone who might have seen it.

DS Payne said: "It is vitally important to us that we locate the vehicle."

A 24-inch John Lewis television is also missing from her home, along with a red HP laptop, and officers would like to hear from anyone who might have been offered these items for sale.

See also: Murder probe as 'body of missing Cynthia Beamond is found'