Police investigating the disappearance of an �extremely vulnerable�disabled man last night said they had arrested two men on suspicion of murder after finding his body.

Police investigating the disappearance of an "extremely vulnerable"disabled man last night said they had arrested two men on suspicion of murder after finding his body.

James Hughes, who needed 24-hour care and had the mental age of an 18-month-old child, and his mother Heather Wardle, 39, went missing from their home in the Church Hill area of Redditch, Worcestershire, on Friday, on the eve of his 22nd birthday.

The mother-of-four was found by teenagers on Monday in dense undergrowth at the base of a tree, a short walk from the family home. Police said she had a ligature around her neck. They are still awaiting the results of toxicology tests.

Detectives believe she is likely to have died within 24 hours of the last sighting of her on Friday.

West Mercia Constabulary confirmed last night that Mr Hughes's body had been discovered at a property in Church Hill, Redditch, yesterday afternoon.

The force said two men were arrested on suspicion of murder and were helping officers with their inquiries at police stations in Kidderminster and Redditch. No further details of the men were released.

A post-mortem examination is being carried out to establish the cause of Mr Hughes's death.

Police last night sealed off the street where Ms Wardle and her son lived.

Earlier in the day, Ms Wardle's partner, Brian Kirby, 36, from Redditch, paid tribute to her as a "brilliant mother" who doted on her children and said that he was struggling to accept that she had killed herself.

In a statement released by police he said he was "devastated" to learn of her death.

"It's heartbreaking," he said. "It's very hard to accept and take in. That wasn't the Heather I know.

"It's hurting me and the kids are also heartbroken and desperately missing her." The toolroom supervisor said he had been Ms Wardle's long-term partner after getting to know her when she moved next door to his sister almost 16 years ago.

He then moved in with her and they were engaged within a year, although they never married.

Mr Kirby said that although they "had problems" in recent months they were still on very close terms and she had helped him get over the death of his father last month.