NORTH Yorkshire Police has dismissed speculation that missing York chef Claudia Lawrence may have been the victim of convicted murderer Christopher Halliwell.

The 52-year-old taxi driver, formerly of Nythe, in Swindon, has admitted the murder of Sian O'Callagah and was convicted recently of murdering Becky Godden in 2003, and a former detective superintendent, Steve Fulcher, suggested recently that he may have killed Claudia along with other women.

He told the Sunday Express that Halliwell’s father lived a few streets away from where Claudia went missing in Heworth, meaning he may have known and visited the area.

But North Yorkshire Police said on Monday afternoon it had been established that Halliwell’s father was not a resident of York or the North Yorkshire area, and that he had actually passed away in 1992.

York Press:

“It can be confirmed that on the information provided by Wiltshire Police, there are no known links between Halliwell and the Claudia Lawrence case," said a spokesman.

"The Senior Investigating Officer in the Claudia Lawrence investigation has been in contact with both Joan and Peter Lawrence following last weekend's speculation of these links, particularly that Halliwell’s dad lived around the corner. This type of speculation does not help the family."

Claudia has not been seen since March 2009. She spoke to her parents by phone on the evening of March 18 but did not turn up for her early shift the next morning at the University of York, where she was a chef.

Her mother Joan said she was "totally shocked" to hear of the claims about Halliwell, saying she knew nothing about the allegations.