The body parts found dumped in suitcases on Clifton Suspension bridge are believed to belong to two adult men, it was revealed today.
It is believed the men were murdered and dismembered in Shepherd’s Bush, west London, and the Metropolitan Police have taken over the gruesome investigation.
Police believe the suspect, a bearded black man wearing a black Adidas baseball cap, black jeans and black trainers with thick white soles, travelled to Bristol on Wednesday evening, carrying the suitcases with him.
A manhunt was launched yesterday for the suspect, alleged to have abandoned the suitcases before he was able to throw them from the 250ft bridge into the gorge below.
Just before midnight on Wednesday, police were alerted to man was seen acting ‘suspiciously’ on the bridge with a suitcase.
Police issued this image of a man they would like to speak in connection with the suitcases
A forensics tent set up on Clifton Suspension Bridge where the two suitcases full of human remains were found
Police launched a manhunt after suitcases full of body parts were discovered on Clifton Suspension Bridge on Wednesday night
A map of Clifton Suspension Bridge in relation to the city of Bristol
But by the time officers arrived, the man – described as being ‘black with a beard’ dressed in a ‘black Adidas baseball cap, black jeans, black jacket, black trainers with thick white soles’ – had fled the scene, leaving his luggage behind.
It is believed the man may have been picked up by accomplices, possibly a man and woman, and driven back to London where he is still at large.
Police have warned the public not to approach him and dial 999 if they recognise him from the description.
Locals who saw the man lugging the cases in Clifton say he was struggling to lift one of them.
There is local speculation that it may have been weighted so it would sink to the bottom of the River Avon when thrown over the side of the historic toll bridge.
Eye-witnesses who saw the man struggling with the suitcases have claimed blood was seeping out of them but it has not been confirmed by police.
One witness, who wished to remain anonymous, said the suitcase left on the bridge ‘appeared to be blood leaking from it’ while the other case was ‘on the road just after the bridge on the Leigh Woods side’.
Locals also claim police were examining two gouges in the pavement leading up to the bridge, caused by the heavy suitcase being dragged.
It was later discovered they contained human remains, which are now believed to belong to be those of two adult men.
A yellow sack with a biohazard warning label was pictured behind police tape at the scene of the incident
An aerial shot of a forensic tent on the Clifton Suspension Bridge on July 11
Forensic investigators in white suits seen working behind a police cordon on Clifton Suspension bridge
Police have carried out a post-mortem examination but it was inconclusive. A second remains ongoing.
Assistant Bristol Commander Supt Vicks Hayward-Melen told a press conference: ‘They discovery of human remains in two suitcases on the Clifton suspension bridge on Wednesday night has understandably caused shock and deep concern.
‘It is believed the man had travelled to the Clifton area of Bristol earlier on Wednesday before taking a taxi to the Clifton Suspension Bridge where the suitcases were unloaded.
‘There is also a crime scene at Shepherd’s Bush.
Police at the scene near Clifton Suspension Bridge, Bristol
An aerial view of a forensic tent on the Clifton Suspension Bridge
Officers were called to reports of a man seen acting suspiciously on Clifton Suspension Bridge in Bristol (pictured) shortly before 12am on Wednesday
‘Forensic post mortem examinations are still being carried out but are believed to be that of two adult males.
Supt Hayward-Melen added: ‘It is important to stress that they have not been formally identified at this time and efforts to locate and speak to their next of kin are being prioritised.
‘The search for the man we released photographs of yesterday is now being led by the Metropolitan Police. There is no information to suggest he remains in the Avon and Somerset area.’
Deputy Assistant Commissioner Andy Valentine, who is leading the investigation for the Met, said: ‘Over the last 48 hours we have been working extremely closely with colleagues from Avon and Somerset.
‘This work leads us to believe the man we need to speak to travelled to Bristol from London earlier on Wednesday evening.’
The shocking revelation comes as drinkers celebrating England’s victory in the Euros semi-final unwittingly asked the suspect if ‘heavy’ suitcase had bodies inside.
An American tourist who was waiting for a taxi on the bridge on Wednesday evening with his wife claims he saw ‘two men getting out of a car and lugging heavy-looking suitcases’ across the road.
The pair had been waiting for a taxi close to the bridge, having watched the Three Lions beat the Netherlands to secure a place in the final against Spain.
A female passerby, is said to have observed two men struggling to carry the ‘heavy’ looking cases across the road intervened to help them and joked about their contents, Giles Malone claimed.
She said to them: ‘These are the heaviest suitcases I’ve ever lifted. What’s in them? Bodies’.
‘We sort of semi-joked about it but they didn’t say anything,’ he said.
Giles Malone spoke about his encounter with a man wanted by police over human remains found in a suitcase
Mr Malone believes there were two men carrying the suitcases but so far the police have only issued a picture of one man they want to speak to.
He told LBC: ‘My wife and I were watching the football game with my dad in Clifton Village and we left my dad’s flat at 10.30pm after the football game.
‘We were waiting for an Uber on the corner by the pub and we were stood there waiting for our car.
‘A man and another man got out of another car across the street and they were lifting these suitcases across the road for some reason, right by us.’
Mr Malone who lives in Florida but has family in the West Country, explained he thought little of the incident until he was on the way to play golf the morning after.
‘I was coming across the bridge to go up to Long Ashton and my dad says it was closed (the bridge) because there was a national news item about some suitcases found,’ he said.
‘I immediately looked at my wife and said: ‘I wonder if that is a coincidence from last night?’.’
Mr Malone is now discussing what he heard and saw with detectives.
He added: ‘They didn’t really say anything of any remembrance at all, they were just struggling with these cases,’ he said, reflecting on the previous night’s interaction.
‘I think this lady must have helped them because she made that comment.’
The suitcases were described by Mr Malone as ‘old’ and ‘tatty’, while he described one of the two men he saw as black and the other as white.
The 250ft bridge linking Clifton in Bristol to Leigh Woods over the Avon gorge is covered by central barriers and safety nets to prevent people from committing suicide.
The rest of the bridge is not covered by netting, with a drop to the road below.
Yesterday, police ruled out that the discovery was in anyway connected to the disappearance of missing law graduate Jack O’Sullivan.
While police said they had been in touch with Jack’s family ‘to inform them of the incident’, they added ‘no parallels are being actively drawn’ between the two cases.
The 23-year-old has not been seen since he went to a house party in Bristol on March 2 and his family are continuing to plead for information on his whereabouts.
Locals are praying the body in the suitcases is not linked to the disappearance of 23-year-old local man Jack Sullivan
The Clifton Suspension Bridge, which links Bristol to Somerset, is to remain closed all day due to the police incident. Pictured is the road leading to the bridge
A police officer speaks with a member of the forensics team at the scene
A taxi – believed to be a blue Hackney cab – is undergoing a forensic examination while the driver is helping police in their bid to identify the man.
On Thursday, police issued a photograph of the wanted man who is black and was wearing a black Adidas baseball cap and black trainers with thick white soles. He had a gold earring and was carrying a black backpack.
He is believed to have left the bridge in the direction of Leigh Woods with one witness saying he was pursued by a cyclist.
He had been challenged by staff for acting suspiciously before leaving the suitcases and their gruesome contents behind.
A picture of the moment bridge staff uncovered the grisly contents of the cases has now emerged, showing two men in high-vis vests using torches to investigate.
The bridge was closed to traffic while forensic officers arrived at the scene to take away the suitcases and their contents.
Concerned resident Michael Mulcahy, 57, said: ‘It’s horrific to think someone has been chopped up and put in a suitcase.
‘I think the guy must have gone there with the intention of chucking them over the side of the bridge.
‘But those safety rails are very high – it would take some effort to pitch a heavy suitcase over the top.’
Mr Mulcahy said it was worrying that such a gruesome crime had happened so close to the Georgian suburb of Clifton, famed for its upmarket restaurants, boutiques and independent shops.
He added: ‘Britain is becoming such a violent place right now. I feel sorry for the emergency services who discovered the contents of the suitcase.’
It is believed police traced the taxi through CCTV on the bridge which is 331ft above the River Avon at high tide.
