A detective leading the hunt for the Ipswich serial killer has admitted there were holes in the case - but said officers were working up to 20 hours a day on the investigation.
A detective leading the hunt for the Ipswich serial killer has admitted there were holes in the case - but said officers were working up to 20 hours a day on the investigation.
In a press conference today, Det Chief Supt Stewart Gull said that the inquiry was still waiting for forensic, clinical and blood tests on the bodies of the five prostitutes.
He said: “It's true there are holes but these holes will be closed. We are also using traditional techniques such as house to house calls and speaking to people of interest.
“That takes time but we are working incredibly hard. Our team processing calls, for example, works 20 hours a day and would work longer if our database didn't need time to shut down.”
Mr Gull said the pause in bodies being discovered and prostitutes going missing allowed the investigating team to get a “semblance of order”.
He added: “This time last week we were dealing with two murders. I've likened this to a crime in action. We've now had a time to pause and get processes in place and get the right qualified staff in the right place.
“There is now a semblance of order to what was a particularly challenging period for us earlier this week.”
At the press conference Mr Gull revealed that more than 60 calls had come in overnight after he released CCTV images of 24-year-old Anneli Alderton and appealed for information.
As a result of this detectives are now confident that Ms Alderton got off the 5.53pm train from Harwich to Colchester on Sunday, December 3 at Manningtree Station at about 6.15pm.
Mr Gull said: “Once again, the public have responded positively to our appeal - and we are now confident that we can begin piecing together the jigsaw of Anneli's last movements.”
On Saturday night, officers spoke to more than 400 motorists and pedestrians in the red light district of Ipswich. But he did not go into any detail of evidence provided.
He said that in the last 24 hours, police have received a further 1,526 calls from the public.
He described that, and the fact that more than 10,000 calls have been logged in the last week, as “phenomenal”.
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