Officers appeal to help identify woman found in the River Mersey in South Manchester

At around 11.10am on Thursday 21 March 2024, officers and emergency services were called to reports of a body in the river, close to Chorlton Water Park in Manchester.

Sadly, the body of a female was subsequently recovered from the water.

Her cause of death has not been confirmed and enquiries are still ongoing.

Officers have unfortunately not been able to identify the woman, who is described as 156cm / 5 ft 1 in height, with medium dark hair. Her approximate age and definitive ethnicity is not currently known.

She did not have any identifiable items in her pockets, or visible jewellery.

Read more: Police release photograph of man as probe into suspcious vehicle fires in Thornton Cleveleys continues

Get the latest headlines, straight to your inbox, with The Gazette’s free emails As work continues to identify the woman, officers have now released images of a lime green Primark-branded crop-top - which is believed to be the same as the one she was wearing – as they continue their efforts to reunite her with her next-of-kin.

In addition, jeans she was wearing are branded as NEW LOOK – JENNA - UK size 8 (EU 36, USA 4). She additionally had non-slip style socks.

Investigators are committed to discovering her identity and determining what led to her death.

Lancashire Police are helping their colleagues in Manchester by widening the net to help identify the woman.

What the police say

Detective Chief Inspector Kulbir Kaur, from Greater Manchester Police, said: “Our work is ongoing to identify the woman and we hope that the description of her – and the image of the top – will help spur the memory of someone who may know her or saw her last movements.

“We are keeping an open-mind as to her cause of death and further enquiries will take place within the coming days and weeks.

“We want nothing more than to reunite this woman with her next-of-kin, so if you have any information at all, please do get in touch with us. Even if you think it is something inconsequential, it could greatly benefit our investigation.”

If you have any information, you can call GMP’s City of Manchester CID on 0161 856 6051, quoting log number 1191 of 21/03/24.

You can also call 101 or visit our website at gmp.police.uk to report information.

Alternatively, you can call the independent charity Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111.