Bradford searched for missing women

Searches of the River Aire and the area near Mr Griffiths’ home continue

A massive police search is under way in Bradford to try to find the remains of two missing women.

Stephen Griffiths, 40, who is suspected of murdering them and third woman, gave his name as "the crossbow cannibal" when he appeared in court.

The remains of Suzanne Blamires have been found, but Susan Rushworth and Shelley Armitage are unaccounted for. All three were sex workers.

Fingertip searches and sniffer dogs are being used by police in the search.

Continue reading the main storyFrom left to right: Shelley Armitage, Suzanne Blamires and Susan Rushworth

The three women all worked as prostitutes in Bradford

In pictures: Murder search

On Friday morning Mr Griffiths, of Thornton Road, Bradford, appeared in Bradford Magistrates' Court and later in Bradford Crown Court.

He is charged with murdering Ms Rushworth, 43, Ms Armitage, 31, and Ms Blamires, 36.

Body parts belonging to Ms Blamires were discovered in the River Aire at Shipley on Tuesday.

Officers from West Yorkshire Police are searching a variety of locations across Bradford including around the city's red light district.

Many streets and alleyways in the Sunbridge Road area remain sealed off and detectives have been seen taking a large number of objects away in plastic bags.

Ms Armitage, from the Allerton area of Bradford, was last seen on 26 April and Ms Rushworth, of Manningham area, disappeared on 22 June last year.

Decriminalising prostitution

Forensic work is continuing around Mr Griffiths' flat and further searches of the River Aire have taken place.

Prime Minister David Cameron told BBC Look North in Leeds that the decriminalisation of prostitution should be "looked at again" in the wake of the situation in Bradford.

"I dare say it should be looked at again. I don't think we should jump to conclusions on this, there are all sorts of problems that decriminalisation would bring," he said.

He also called for a clamp-down on kerb crawling.

Meanwhile, officers investigating the disappearance of York woman Claudia Lawrence have said they will be working with West Yorkshire Police to investigate any potential link with the alleged Bradford murders.

A North Yorkshire Police spokesman said: "Consultation will take place with our colleagues in West Yorkshire Police to ensure that any factors that are common to both cases are identified and investigated promptly."

This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.

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