THE mystery surrounding the death of a Hampshire chef has taken a new twist after it emerged that she was injured in a car crash just days before her body was found in a ditch.
Self-employed caterer Liz Neilson was involved in a two-vehicle accident near the New Forest farm where her business was based.
Four days later she collapsed and died as she walked along Undershore Road in Lymington.
A police investigation has failed to establish any link between the two events. However, the cause of her sudden and unexpected death remains unexplained.
Miss Neilson, 32, of Pilley, provided food for private parties in the New Forest and also baked cakes for the Willow café in Lymington High Street.
She was driving on Warborne Lane, Portmore, on November 8 when her car was damaged in a collision.
Last Friday her body was discovered on a narrow, tree-lined section of road that runs alongside the Lymington River.
Police say Miss Neilson suffered minor injuries in the accident, which she reported to the police later that evening.
Detectives from Hampshire’s major crime department launched an inquiry following her death. A post-mortem examination showed there were no suspicious circumstances but failed to establish what killed Miss Neilson. Further tests have been ordered.
A police spokesman said: “There is nothing from the results of the post-mortem to reveal any link between the collision and her death.”
Miss Neilson, a Liverpudlian who moved to Hampshire about three years ago, rented space in the kitchens at Warborne Farm.
She cooked food for dinner parties and is understood to have been on her way to a job when the accident happened on a wet and stormy night.
One of her friends, Louise Young, said: “Liz was a kind girl, loved to have a good joke and was a fabulous cook.
“She loved outdoor activities and was particularly interested in cycling – she could often be seen streaking down Pilley Hill in her Lycra.
“Liz was very generous and would help wherever she could. She’d offered to do all the cooking for a fundraising event due to be held in Pilley in a few weeks time.”
A former colleague, Beaulieu trader John Jordan, added: “She was a nice, pleasant girl who was always willing to help.”
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