Police urge public to remain vigilant as they investigate PCSO Julia James murder
29 April 2021, 11:31 | Updated: 29 April 2021, 22:03
Police investigating the murder of a serving PCSO have urged for "people in the area to remain vigilant".
Julia James' body was found in Akholt Wood, Kent, on Tuesday and no arrests have been made yet.
It has shocked the nearby hamlet of Snowdown, where the 53-year-old is understood to have lived with her husband, while Home Secretary Priti Patel has offered her "sincere condolences".
Kent Police is continuing to investigate.
Read more: Death of serving PCSO found in Woodland being treated as murder
So saddened to hear of the death of @kent_police PCSO Julia James.
— Priti Patel (@pritipatel) April 28, 2021
I offer my sincere condolences to Julia’s friends, family and colleagues at this awful time. https://t.co/8gfqmA14yV
"We're particularly keen to speak to those who regularly visit the area who may have seen something out of place and those who drove by who have dashcam footage,” Assistant Chief Constable Tom Richards said.
"We would advise people in the area to remain vigilant until the full circumstances of the death are established."
The force is pursuing a number of lines of enquiry and it is "vitally important" that anyone who saw something suspicious on Monday or Tuesday comes forward, he added.
Resident John Miller, 72, told the PA news agency: "I can't believe it's true to be honest, everyone feels safe round here.
"(I'm) gutted, gutted for the family and whoever it is I hope they catch them and they get put away for life."
He said James' family is "very close".
Officers have been seen around the hamlet while a white tent was put up in a field nearby.
A police officer was seen standing guard at the home Ms James is thought to have lived at while another was seen in the garden.
Anyone with information can contact Kent Police on 0800 0514 526 and footage can be submitted at https://mipp.police.uk/operation/4601020121F07-PO1
