Southampton man rearrested after missing mum's remains found

A 56-year-old man has been rearrested on suspicion of conspiracy to commit murder and further arrested on suspicion of murder after human remains were identified as a missing mother-of-three.

Joanne Sheen, then aged 44, was last seen when she travelled from Fareham to Southampton with a friend on 5 December 2019.

Metropolitan Police officers were called to Padstow Walk in Feltham, London, on 12 August after bones were found in shrubland damaged by a fire a week earlier.

The man, from Southampton, first arrested in 2020, has been released on conditional bail. Another man, also 56 and from Southampton, was released on bail after being arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to commit murder.

Sheen's disappearance sparked a major police investigation, which the force said led to more than 4,000 lines of inquiry, more than 300 statements taken and searches of more than 10 addresses and numerous water vessels.

Sheen was reported missing by her family in February 2020, two months after she was last seen.

An investigation led to a number of arrests on suspicion of conspiracy to murder in 2020, but no-one was charged and the case remained unsolved.

Officers previously said she had no fixed address and did not own a vehicle or hold a bank account.

London Fire Brigade attended a fire at Bedfont Pits on 5 August that damaged about two hectares of shrubland.

The Metropolitan Police said human remains were found by a member of the public at the site near Bedfont Lakes Country Park a week later.

Detectives in London handed the investigation over to Hampshire Police after the remains were identified as those of Sheen.

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Murder probe after wildfire uncovers body in park

Human remains identified as mum missing since 2019