Investigators have renewed an appeal for a woman known only as "Tina" who may hold crucial information about the unsolved murder of Julie Finley, who was strangled and dumped in a field off the Rainford Bypass in 1994.
Julie Finley, 23, was last seen alive at around 10.30pm on August 5, 1994, near the Royal Liverpool Hospital. She had been talking to a white man of average build, aged in his 20s or 30s. Her body was discovered by a cyclist at approximately 1.30pm the following day in a field off the Rainford Bypass. She had been strangled, and her killer has never been found despite several media appeals over the 32 years since her death.
The night Julie disappeared
On the day she vanished, Julie had visited her parents at their home in Dovecot. She left at around 5.30pm and travelled into Liverpool before going to the flat she shared with her boyfriend on Huskisson Street in Liverpool city centre. When she left her parents' home, she was wearing a white T-shirt with three buttons up the front, black trousers, a black waist-length zip-up jacket, green socks and black boots.
Following a police appeal at the time, a witness described seeing a white Transit van near the spot where Julie was found, sometime after midnight. In 2014, on the 20th anniversary of her death, a Crimestoppers appeal was launched with a reward for information. Merseyside Police said they were searching for a woman calling herself Tina, who told officers Julie had said she was going to see a taxi driver from Prescot on the night she vanished. However, after initially speaking to officers in the aftermath of the case and promising to get back in touch, Tina was not heard from again.
Fresh appeal and reward
Crimestoppers has reiterated its appeal for Tina, or anyone who knows her, to come forward in a fresh appeal today (Wednesday, October 21), along with anyone who remembers seeing the white van on the night of the murder. A £20,000 reward is available for information given exclusively to Crimestoppers. The organisation guarantees complete anonymity, meaning that people who call or contact it online can pass on what they know without ever giving any personal details. Information passed directly to the police will not qualify for a reward.
Pamela Tompsett, North West regional manager at Crimestoppers, said: "More than three decades after Julie's murder, her family are still waiting for answers. Julie was a much-loved daughter and sister who was only 23-years-old when her life was taken. Those closest to her have lived with that loss every day since. Time can change relationships and loyalties. Someone who felt unable to speak in 1994 may feel differently now. However small or insignificant your information may seem, it could help police complete the picture. We would particularly like to hear from anyone who knows the identity of the woman known as 'Tina' or who remembers seeing a white Transit van in the Rainford area that night. If you are Tina, please contact us at crimestoppers-uk.org or on 0800 555 111."
How to provide information
The reward will only be payable for information passed directly to Crimestoppers and not to the police. A reward code must be asked for when calling Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111. If you contact the charity via the online form anonymously, the "Keep in contact" facility must be used, and a reward code must be requested on your initial contact with us.
Crimestoppers guarantee complete anonymity, meaning that people who call or contact the charity online can pass on what they know without ever giving any personal details. Computer IP addresses are never traced. Telephone calls are never recorded, there is no caller ID display and no 1471 facility. You will never be asked to make a statement or go to court, and no one will ever know the information came from you.
