Lindsay Birbeck: Boy arrested on suspicion of teaching assistant's murder
Police in Lancashire have urged people not to spread rumours about Lindsay Birbeck's death on social media.
Wednesday 28 August 2019 00:47, UK
A 16-year-old boy has been arrested on suspicion of murdering a teaching assistant whose body was found in a cemetery at the weekend.
Police investigating the killing of Lindsay Birbeck earlier released footage of a suspect pulling a wheelie bin.
In a statement, Det Supt Andy Cribbin from Lancashire Police said: "The response to our earlier appeal has been absolutely overwhelming and I would like to thank everyone who has come forward with information.
"While we have made an arrest our enquiries are very much continuing and I would continue to appeal for anyone with information to come forward; however, I would urge people not to speculate and to be mindful of the comments they make, especially on social media, as this causes distress to the family and could impact on our investigation."
The boy remains in custody and Ms Birbeck's family have been informed.
The 47-year-old's body was found at Accrington Cemetery on Saturday, almost two weeks after she was last seen.
A post-mortem concluded she was strangled.
The victim's family continue to be supported by family liaison officers, detectives said.
Ms Birkbeck was last seen on CCTV walking in Accrington on 12 August.
Her Huawei mobile phone is still missing.
A large team of detectives, uniformed officers and staff are "working round the clock" on the case, reviewing CCTV and making house-to-house inquiries as they try to piece together what happened to her.
Police are appealing for anyone with information to come forward.
"I would also like to speak to anyone who has seen anything suspicious in or around the cemetery area after 12 August or anyone who has any drone footage or dashcam footage which could assist," DS Cribbin said.
Anyone with information can contact police on 101 quoting incident reference LC-20190826-0824, anonymously via Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111, or online at crimestoppers-uk.org.