What happened to Sarah Mayhew?
The remains of Mayhew, 38, from Croydon, south London, were found in New Addington on 2 April. Two people have since been charged with murder
An inquest into the death of Sarah Mayhew, whose dismembered body was found a month after she went missing in March, is set to open on Wednesday.
The remains of Mayhew, 38, from Croydon, south London, were found in New Addington on 2 April. Two people have since been charged with murder. The inquest will open at South London Coroner’s Court in Croydon.
Here, Yahoo News UK explains everything we know about what happened to Mayhew.
What happened to Sarah Mayhew?
Mayhew was last seen in Sutton, south-west London, on the evening of 8 March. Her remains were found in Rowdown Fields in New Addington on 2 April. Police had been called to the scene after a walker said his dog had uncovered a human bone.
Arms, legs and a head were then found nearby and identified as belonging to Mayhew by her DNA. Tributes have been left at the scene. Police are continuing to search for the victim’s torso, the Old Bailey heard on Thursday.
The cause of her death remains unconfirmed. However, an examination of her body found two small vertebrae were broken in her voicebox, bruising to the skull and her head had been shaved.
Who has been charged with her murder?
Gemma Watts, 48, and Steven Sansom, 44, were arrested on 6 April and subsequently charged with Mayhew's murder and preventing her lawful and decent burial. On Thursday, Sansom and Watts appeared separately at the Old Bailey before Judge Philip Katz KC.
Watts, of Featherbed Lane, New Addington, appeared first by video link from Bronzefield prison, followed later by Sansom from Belmarsh jail. Both defendants spoke only to confirm their identities.
The court heard both she and Sansom are alleged to have killed Mayhew at a residential property on the night of 8 March before disposing of the body.
Prosecutor Tom Little KC said: “This is quite a significant ongoing investigation in relation to the whereabouts of the entirety of the deceased’s body.
“The deceased’s body was certainly cut up in parts with use of power tools.”
Judge Katz set a plea hearing for 27 June and a provisional four-week trial from 17 February next year. He remanded the defendants into custody.
