Body of murdered girl is found in park

TRAGIC A YOUNG woman’s body found at a beauty spot yesterday is believed to be that of a teenager who never came home from college.

Murder detectives said the girl – named locally as 18-year-old Ellen Higginbottom – suffered severe head injuries in a “horrific” attack. Her body was discovered at 2.30am on the edge of a field at Orrell Water Park in Wigan, Greater Manchester.

Detective Superintendent Howard Millington said: “My thoughts are with the woman’s family at this devastating time. This was a brutal attack on a young woman. We have a full investigation team working on finding out exactly what happened to her and to try and find the person who did this.”

Police were alerted on Friday evening when Ellen went missing after leaving Winstanley College, close to the park. Family said it was “extremely out of character” for her not to come home.

Officers have not ruled out a sexual motive for the murder and are also probing claims two women were followed by two men in the same area on Thursday. Det Supt Millington added: “We are keeping an open mind about this.”