A body found in Kent woodland is that of Sarah Everard, Scotland Yard said.
Speaking to reporters outside Scotland Yard, Assistant Commissioner Nick Ephgrave said the body found in woodland in Kent was that of Sarah Everard.
He said: “As you know, on Wednesday evening detectives investigating the disappearance of Sarah Everard discovered a body secreted in woodland in Kent.
“The body has now been recovered and formal identification procedure has now been undertaken.
“I can now confirm that it is the body of Sarah Everard.”
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Ephgrave said that Sarah Everard’s family had been told this “most distressing news”.
The Metropolitan Police officer accused of her murder remains in custody, he added.
He said his “thoughts and prayers, and those of the entire organisation” remain with Sarah Everard’s family “at this awful time”.
He added: “Specialist officers remain in constant contact with Sarah’s family, and will continue to support them throughout the investigation and beyond.
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“That investigation continues at a pace and we have hundreds of officers working round the clock to establish the full circumstances of Sarah’s disappearance, and her murder.”
“I know that the public feel hurt and angry about what has happened, and those are sentiments that I share personally, and I know my colleagues here at Scotland Yard and across the Met share as well.
“I also recognise the wider concerns that have been raised, quite rightly, about the safety of women in public spaces in London and also elsewhere in the country.
“I want to say now that this organisation, and the men and women in it, remain committed to protecting Londoners wherever they are in this city.
“And that commitment is undiminished by these events and if anything that commitment is strengthened by these tragic circumstances.”
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