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Cockle picker to be buried in China
A woman who was swept to sea with her husband in the Morecambe Bay cockle picker tragedy six years ago will be buried alongside her husband in China, a detective said.
An inquest ruled yesterday that a human skull found on a beach in Silverdale, Lancs, in July was that of 37-year-old Liu Qin Ying who went missing, presumed dead, on the night of February 5, 2004.
The body of her husband, Xu Yu Hua, was recovered the following day.
Police believe 23 Chinese men and women died but only 21 bodies were recovered after the disaster.
All the victims, who were illegal immigrants, were caught in fast
rising tides on Warton Sands, off Hest Bank.
At least 26 children lost parents in the tragedy, including Xu Bin, now aged 19, the only son of the dead couple.
Preston deputy coroner Simon Jones was told that the skull was discovered on July 10 during a guide tour of the area.
Det Supt Steve Brunskill, who led the identification process in 2004, said: "The witness, Stephen Clarke, was acting as a guide across Morecambe Bay riding a quad bike when he became aware of what he thought was a set of dentures in the sand.
"On closer examination he found it to be a human skull."
Mr Brunskill said the skull was sent to a forensic anthropologist at the University of Central Lancashire who determined it belonged to a female, aged between 25 and 45, and of Far East Asian descent.
Two of her teeth were then sent to the Forensic Science Service at Wetherby and confirmed in a DNA match with samples that officers obtained from her parents when they visited China six years ago.
Adjourning the inquest, Mr Jones said: "I am entirely satisfied it is the skull of Liu Qin Ying."
The matter will now be passed to the Crown Prosecution Service who will decide whether it is in the public interest to pursue further criminal charges against the ruthless gangmaster who was jailed for 14 years for his part in the tragedy.
Lin Lian Ren, 29, was convicted of 21 counts of manslaughter after a seven-month trial at Preston Crown Court in 2005.
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Saturday 26 May 2012
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