01/06/2005

CCTV footage released in hunt for Jeshma’s killer

Police investigating the murder of teenager Jeshma Raithatha have released CCTV footage of her movements on the day she was killed.

The 17-year-old A-Level student from Greenford, west London, went missing on May 16. Her body was discovered in woodland near her home on May 24. She had been stabbed through the heart three times. Forensic examinations later determined that she had been raped.

Earlier reports had indicated that Jeshma had been held captive for several days before she was killed and her body dumped in the woodland where it was discovered. However, additional forensic tests confirmed that she was killed on the day she went missing and in the area she was found.

There had also been speculation that Jeshma may have been killed by someone she knew – possibly someone she had met over the Internet – but it is now believed that she was killed in a random attack.

On the day that Jeshma was killed, detectives say that she spent the morning at school studying for her exams. She left at 1pm and caught a bus to Wembley High Road, where she went shopping at Primark and TownCity. She returned on a bus to Sudbury Hill, arriving at around 3pm. She walked down a footpath towards her home, through the wooded area, where she was killed.

Police believe that she may have been forced by her attacker into a wooden ‘den’ in the area, which is reportedly used by local drinkers. Her body was discovered there, eight days later.

Police are still searching for a man who lived close to Jeshma, who went missing after the attack. His home has been searched during the course of the investigation. Police have also been searching the area where Jeshma’s body was discovered in an attempt to find the murder weapon.

(KMcA/GB)




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