DETECTIVES have sealed off part of a Southampton park to search for human remains, the Daily Echo can reveal.

Officers launched the investigation after a tip-off to the city's major crime team saying a body could be buried at Riverside Park in Bitterne.

Scenes-of-crime officers and plain clothes detectives were at the scene from 9am yesterday to conduct a thorough search of the area near a compost heap where a pensioner was robbed at knifepoint a week ago.

Police say they are neither linking the two cases nor are they linking the investigation with any ongoing missing person or murder inquiry.

A spokeswoman could not confirm the exact nature of the investigation due to "operation reasons" other than to say it was not part of any ongoing inquiry.

However, she added that nothing was being ruled out at this stage.

Uniformed officers, pictured above and left, remained at the scene throughout the day and throughout last night. Unmarked police vehicles were parked around the sealed-off area which contains a caravan and temporary toilet.

Det Insp Nigel Niven, said: "I can confirm that a search is being carried out in Riverside Park after we received information suggesting there could be human remains there.

"I am not in a position to comment further on the specifics of the search as it could be damaging to any future investigation."

Although scenes-of-crime officers and forensic teams did visit the site yesterday it is not thought any hi-tech sonar equipment, which would show any disturbance in the ground, has yet been used. The police presence at the scene was in addition to officers from the robbery unit, who were conducting a high-profile appeal for witnesses to a robbery where 70-year-old Dennis Tierney was left for dead on a compost heap last Wednesday.