Woman released without charge in murder hunt (From Warrington Guardian)

Woman released without charge in murder hunt

POLICE have launched a murder hunt after the body of a Sandbach man was found in a town centre car park last Friday morning.

The body of Peter Harris, aged 61, of Town Fields, was discovered in a car park behind the Iceland store in High Street, near to The George pub at 5.45am.

Following a post mortem examination at the weekend, which revealed he had died of head injuries, police announced they were treating the incident as a murder investigation.

Officers had been questioning a Sandbach woman at Crewe Police Station, who they arrested at 6pm on Saturday.

Cheshire Police then secured a court warrant to give them a 36-hour extension to quiz the 22- years-old further about the death.

But the woman, who has not been named, was released without charge at 6pm on Tuesday after helping police with enquiries.

For much of Friday officers stood guard over the body, which had been discovered by Waitrose staff, while scenes of crime officers combed the town for vital evidence.

Mr Harris was well known in the pubs around the town centre, where he would drink with friends on most days.

He was a keen Tottenham Hotspur fan and had recently moved to a retirement bungalow at Town Fields, where he lived alone near the home of his ex-wife.

Neighbours described him as a quiet man who kept himself to himself, but also as 'friendly' and 'easy going'.

One town centre trader, who asked not to be named, said: "I used to see him about town quite a bit. He used to like going for a drink, but he always spoke and never seemed any trouble.

"You always read about things like this happening elsewhere, but it's frightening when it happens on your own doorstep."

Mr Harris, who was unemployed at the time of his death, had previously worked the night shift at Safeway in Sandbach, before it became Waitrose.

A police spokesman said: "A Home Office post mortem has taken place and concluded that the cause of death is head injuries.

"We can confirm that the incident is now being treated as a murder investigation."

Anyone with information about the incident should call Cheshire Police on 01244 613377.