DETECTIVES hunting the killer who murdered a woman 30 years ago said today they have started eliminating people from the inquiry - days after the man wrongly imprisoned for the crime walked free.

Sean Hodgson spent 27 years in jail for the murder of Teresa De Simone, 22, in Southampton in 1979 until new DNA evidence proved he was not the person who raped and strangled her.

Detective Chief Inspector Phil McTavish, who is leading the investigation, said it was going to be a protracted process to try to catch the real killer.

''To date, the DNA profile has not been matched on the national DNA database,'' he said.

''The profile is such that it permits us to be able to eliminate people against it.

''This process is being undertaken as a matter of course and does not infer that one individual is considered a suspect.

''All persons screened to date have been eliminated against the DNA profile,'' he said.


For the full story on the police investigation see tomorrow’s Daily Echo.