Teenage girl whose body was found in Southampton woodland was stabbed to death, say police

Detectives hunting for weapon used to kill 13-year-old Lucy McHugh after man arrested

Lucy McHugh was found dead on 26 July, 2018, a day after she was last seen by family (PA)

A 13-year-old girl whose body was found in woodland in Southampton had been stabbed to death, police have said.

Authorities are attempting to trace the weapon used to kill Lucy McHugh and have released images of the clothing she was wearing at the time of her disappearance in a bid to identify potential witnesses.

The teenager had last been seen at her family home in the west of the city on Wednesday morning, before a member of the public discovered her body in woods close to a sports centre the next day.

Police have released images of the clothing Lucy was wearing at the time of her disappearance (Hampshire Constabulary)

Detectives have now confirmed Lucy died as a result of stab wounds, but said they were not in a position to say whether the weapon used was “a knife, scissors or other bladed implement”.

A 24-year-old man remained in police custody overnight on Sunday after he was arrested on suspicion of murder and sexual activity with a child.

Detective superintendent Paul Barton, of Hampshire Constabulary, urged social media users not to speculate on details of the case online while investigations continued.

“We know how shocked the community is and understand that emotions are running high,” DS Barton said.

“However we ask people not to speculate on social media - it is unhelpful to the investigation and to Lucy’s family. Please allow us to do our job and find out what happened to Lucy.”

Lucy’s mother, Stacey White, called for calm in a Facebook post after revealing family members of the man arrested in connection with the killing had received violent threats.

“Please can I ask that people are not passing blame onto family members of the person that has been arrested in connection with my precious daughter Lucy's murder,” she wrote.

“Making threats of violence to them will not bring my angel back.”

Police are looking to speak to anyone who may have seen Lucy in the hours before her death and on Sunday issued images of the clothes she was wearing at the time of her disappearance.

The teenager had been dressed in a distinctive black jacket with white sleeves, which had the logo of the band Falling in Reverse printed on the front and “RADKE 01” written in red on the back.

She was also wearing camouflage leggings, a white vest top and black and white Jordan 23 trainers.

“We’re hoping the images and descriptions of the type of clothing she was last seen wearing will jog people’s memories,” DS Barton added.

“So that we can piece together what she did after leaving her house, we urge anyone who saw Lucy, had contact with her or knows of her movements on Wednesday to get in touch.”