Searches continue for missing woman believed to have been murdered
Searches of a house in the hunt for a missing woman believed to have been murdered are continuing, as police revealed there were other locations of interest to the investigation.
Julia Rawson was last seen on May 12 and detectives believe she has been killed, though her body has not been found.
Specialist officers have been searching an address in Mission Drive, Dudley Port, Tipton, over the last two weeks in the hunt for clues on the disappearance of the 42-year-old former market trader. Two men have been charged with her murder.
West Midlands Police confirmed a search of a canal close to the house had ended, but added officers could return.
A force spokeswoman said there were "other areas of interest" to investigators.
The disappearance and presumed murder of Ms Rawson, who most recently lived in a house share with five other people in the Kates Hill area of Dudley, was met with shock by stallholders at Dudley Market, where she worked until around five years ago.
She later ran a shop in the Fountain Arcade and was described as "lovely" and "pleasant" by those who worked with her.
John Green, who runs a butchers in the Fountain Arcade, said he saw Ms Rawson shortly before she disappeared.
He said: "About four weeks ago she popped in. I asked her what she was doing now. She seemed alright, she always seemed pretty happy. She used to come in and get a bag of scratchings and that
Wendy Farmer, who works on the market, said: "She was a pleasant girl. On the odd occasion we stood next to her we would have a rattle.
"I saw her up her recently and I said hello. I can't imagine why someone would murder her. She was quiet, she kept herself to herself. She was just an inoffensive girl."
