TV plea in grandmother death probe

Police hope a televised appeal will help shed new light on the suspicious death of a grandmother whose body was found in woods.

Elizabeth “Betty” Brown, 56, was last seen alive on May 28 last year on the No 3 bus in Nicholson Street, Edinburgh.

Her body was discovered eight months later in undergrowth in woods near a disused quarry in Longtown, Cumbria, on January 18.

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On the day she was last seen she was carrying two large black Aldi bags which were discovered near where her body was found. Money was withdrawn from her account at the Royal Bank of Scotland cash machine in Nicholson Street the same day. Police believe Ms Brown made the withdrawal.

Det Chief Insp Jeff Ashton, of Cumbria Constabulary, will appear on BBC’s Crimewatch programme tonight to appeal for information to trace Ms Brown’s last movements and disclose new information.

Her daughter, Sarah Smith, and sister, Maureen McLauchlan, will also appear on the show to reveal how her death has affected their lives. Ms Smith said: “We just want to lay her to rest, you know, so that she’s in peace.”

Earlier this year detectives spoke to passengers on board buses travelling between Edinburgh and Carlisle during an appeal for information.

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Cumbria Constabulary said Ms Brown had family in the Gretna area and when visiting them she would get the X95 bus from Edinburgh to Longtown, disembarking at the Graham’s Arms, from where she would be picked up.