Missing woman’s partner charged with her murder
A MAN charged with murdering a woman in 2018 – though she was only reported missing two weeks ago – is her partner, it was revealed yesterday.
Stuart Williamson, 56, has been accused of murdering Diane Douglas between December 1 and December 31, 2018.
Her body has not been found. A missing person inquiry was launched after Diane, 58, who lived with Williamson in a rented Norfolk farmhouse, was reported missing on October 21 by relatives.
Isolated
They had not seen her for several years.
Norfolk Police later confirmed they were treating the case as a “no body” murder investigation.
Williamson was arrested on Saturday in Wales on suspicion of her murder and brought back to Norfolk for questioning.
He was charged with her murder and appeared via video link before Norwich magistrates yesterday.
The couple lived at isolated Meadow Farm in Colton, near Norwich.
Williamson spoke only to confirm his personal details during the brief hearing and gave his current address as Meadow Farm.
He was remanded in custody to appear before Norwich Crown Court today. Forensic officers were
yesterday continuing to carry out searches at the farmhouse.
Senior investigating officer Det Insp Matthew Connick has appealed for help from the public.
He said: “Although we hope to find Diane alive, we do believe it is highly likely that she has come to harm as she has not been seen for a significant period of time.
“We have therefore launched a murder investigation.
“We have a team of officers searching her last known address in Colton and we expect it to continue for a number of days.
“We would urge anyone who may have seen, known or has any information concerning Diane’s disappearance to contact us.” Officers are standing guard outside the three-bedroom property, which is down a track around 400 yards from a road on the outskirts of Colton.
Villagers said the remote farmhouse had been rented out for around 10 years. Local farmers leased the land around it.
Shock
It is not known how long Diane had lived at the address or when she was last seen.
A dog walker on a nearby footpath said: “It is really very remote and cut off from the rest of the village. There are high hedges so you cannot really see whether someone is at home or not.”
A villager who asked not to be named revealed she had been visited by Diane’s relatives when they were hunting for her.
She said: “The first we knew anything was wrong was when her family came around looking for her. They were quite concerned for her welfare.
“We couldn’t help. Then we saw all the police activity. It’s isolated round here and quite a shock to learn what may have happened.”
Anyone with information should contact Norfolk Police on 101 quoting Operation Entity.