Alison Hernandez, the police and crime commissioner for Devon and Cornwall, has issued an apology after incorrectly claiming that multiple dead bodies had been found in woodland during a murder investigation. The Conservative commissioner made the statement during a police and crime panel meeting, saying that investigations were ongoing to determine how many bodies had been discovered.
However, Devon and Cornwall Police swiftly corrected her, stating that only the body of one man, Daniel Coleman, 43, had been recovered from the woods in Sticker, near St Austell, and that no other remains had been found. In her apology, Ms Hernandez said she was 'not in possession of all the facts' and regretted any alarm caused.
The murder investigation is one of three separate probes currently underway in Cornwall. The body of Lee Hockey, 50, was found in another woodland between Truro and Probus on July 1, and a third inquiry follows a fatal fire in Newquay on July 22, where a man in his 30s died. A 33-year-old man from Bolton has been arrested on suspicion of murder in connection with the fire.
Detective Superintendent Jon Bancroft confirmed that the investigations are independent and not believed to be linked. James Desborough, 39, has been charged with murdering Daniel Coleman and is due to appear at Truro Crown Court next month.
