Mother broke down over 'crossbow cannibal prostitute murder'

The mother of murdered prostitute Susan Rushworth described how she broke down screaming after she was told her daughter was dead.

Christine Thompson, 72, was on holiday in Greece last week with her husband Barry, 72, and grandson James Rushworth, 24, when they learned police were treating the 43-year-old's disappearance as murder.

Mrs Thompson said she had always held a "glimmer of hope" her daughter, who was undergoing treatment for heroin addiction when she vanished in Bradford 11 months ago, would be found alive.

"I don't know how I will cope without her. She was my best friend and like a sister to me. She was my world and it has been agony waiting to hear the news we all feared," she told The Sun.

"I'm just devastated. I feel that my world has collapsed. We were enjoying our holiday when James rang home and found out what happened. He broke into pieces and I started screaming."

Stephen Griffiths, 40, who referred to himself in court as the "crossbow cannibal", has been charged with murdering Ms Rushworth and Shelley Armitage, whose bodies have not been found, and Suzanne Blamires.

Remains found in the river where the body of Ms Blamires was discovered do not belong to Ms Rushworth or Ms Armitage, police said yesterday.

Forensic tests on the matter found in the River Aire at Shipley, West Yorkshire, revealed they were animal and not human.

Test continued on tools discovered in a suitcase pulled out of the river over the weekend.

Detectives reportedly questioned Griffiths about a fourth prostitute whose murder was never solved. The body of 19-year-old Rebecca Hall was found dumped in an alley in Bradford in 2001.

Her mother Angela Hall, 56, told the Daily Telegraph that Griffiths had been questioned about her daughter's case.

She said: "I have spoken to the police and they have been asking him about Becky but he wouldn't say anything. He didn't answer them."

Police today said at least 40 detectives were involved with the case and officers were still carrying out detailed searches of the river, excavation sites around Bradford city centre and Griffiths' flat. Around 100 sites around the city were being searched, including roadworks dug up by utility companies.

A West Yorkshire Police spokesman said: "Further forensic examinations on remains recovered this weekend show they are not human but animal waste which appears to be from food preparation."

The remains were recovered on Friday from the river, a short distance from where the body parts of Ms Blamires had been dumped.

The suitcase containing tools was found on Saturday and was still to undergo forensic tests, police said.

The three women all went missing in Bradford. Ms Blamires, 36, was last seen on Friday May 21, while Ms Armitage, 31, has been missing since Monday April 26, and Ms Rushworth disappeared on June 22 last year.

Griffiths is charged with murdering Ms Blamires between May 20 and May 25; murdering Ms Rushworth between June 22, 2009 and May 25 this year, and murdering Ms Armitage between April 25 and May 25 this year.

He was arrested last Monday at his home on the edge of Bradford's red-light district.

Psychology graduate Griffiths, who did postgraduate research in criminology at Bradford University, lived in the flats for about 13 years. He attended the private Queen Elizabeth Grammar School in Wakefield in his teens.

When he was asked for his name at Bradford magistrates' court on Friday, Griffiths replied: "The crossbow cannibal."

Asked for his address, the suspect, who was wearing a black shirt and navy blue jeans, replied: "Erm... here, I guess."

Griffiths will appear before Bradford crown court again on June 7 via video link from Wakefield Prison.