16 March 2021

Police continue to comb woodland and water in Sarah Everard investigation

16 March 2021

Officers continue to comb woodland in Kent while specialist divers scour water in search of clues following the death of Sarah Everard

Large portions of the historic town of Sandwich have been cordoned off as inquiries into the death of the 33-year-old continued on Tuesday.

Serving Metropolitan Police officer Wayne Couzens, 48, has been charged with kidnapping and killing the marketing executive, who went missing while walking home from a friend’s flat in south London on March 3.

He appeared at the Old Bailey court by video link on Tuesday and was remanded into custody ahead of a provisional trial date of October 25.

Sarah Everard death probe (PA Wire)

In Kent, officers were seen painstakingly working their way through woodland near the River Stour, using sticks to search areas of the ground.

At one point more than a dozen officers walked side by side as they moved across a green area by the water bank.

A large police presence has been positioned around the town in recent days as the investigation continues.

Also on Tuesday, specialist divers continued their searches of a waterway in the town.

It comes after officers used sticks to search through a shopping trolley shelter outside a Co-operative supermarket on Monday, while others looked under vehicles.

At the edge of the cordon, a few officers gathered for discussion as one showed their colleagues a piece of gold jewellery that was then put into an evidence bag.

Scotland Yard said police have been routinely searching areas of London and Kent as part of the investigation.

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