A BODY has been discovered at an ancient cave in a popular beauty spot.
A passerby called police to the scene in Hangman’s Woods in Grays, Essex, shortly after 2pm on Tuesday after spotting a body hidden in deneholes.
Deneholes are ancient chalk caves which were used as mines in medieval times.
The deneholes in Hangman’s Woods are considered the best preserved set in existence and are a Scheduled Monument.
Each structure consists of vertical shafts through sand with branching chambers cut into the chalk.
The ones found in Hangman’s Woods are particularly deep, with some shafts reaching more than 20m deep before hitting chalk.
While most have been infilled, some remain open – although with fencing in place as it is a biological Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) for the bat colony which roosts there.
Typically, there is no public access allowed to the deneholes, but it is possible to request access from the council.
Detective Inspector Lydia George said: “Utilising specialist equipment and skills and working with our partners, we recovered a body yesterday.
“Work is underway to establish who they are and the circumstances around how they came to be in the deneholes and how they died.
“I want to thank the community around this area for their support, particularly local businesses who kindly provided refreshments.
“We will provide further information as and when we are able to.”
More to follow… For the latest news on this story keep checking back at The Sun Online
Thesun.co.uk is your go-to destination for the best celebrity news, real-life stories, jaw-dropping pictures and must-see video.
Like us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/thesun and follow us from our main Twitter account at @TheSun.
Essex PoliceA body has been found at a cave in Hangman’s Woods[/caption] Published: [#item_custom_pubDate]
