Pensioner of 70 battered to death

AN ELDERLY woman was bludgeoned to death in an apparent attack by a burglar, it was disclosed last night, writes Andrew Buncombe.

Elsie Freeman, 70, was found on Saturday by a neighbour who had called.

Yesterday police said she could have been lying there for three days. Mrs Freeman, who lived alone in Impington, near Cambridge, was last seen alive on Wednesday.

A spokesman for Cambridgeshire Police said: "The post-mortem examination revealed the woman died of severe head injuries consistent with having been struck by repeated blows with a weapon."

Forensic experts yesterday combed the house for any clues to Mrs Freeman's death, but last night there were no clear leads.

Detective Superintendent Ian Negus, who is leading the investigation, said: "There is evidence of burglary at the house which I believe is linked to the murder. Our inquiries so far have revealed that the woman was last seen on Wednesday, March 4."