A RETIRED policeman says he believes a woman whose body was found in North Yorkshire 32 years ago may have been murdered by the Yorkshire Ripper.

Chris Clark, formerly of Norfolk Police, says he thinks the unidentified body found at Sutton Bank in 1981 may be that of a murder victim, and he says it is one of 17 unsolved murders he believes may have been committed by Peter Sutcliffe. The find came to be known as the “nude in the nettles” case.

In August, 1981, police were called and told by a well-spoken man where to find the body, but he would not give his name. Mr Clark has compiled a dossier on many unsolved murders from 1968 to 1980. He told The Press he had evidence suggesting Sutcliffe could have committed some of the crimes, due to their nature, location and timing, but he said that in the Sutton Bank case he had only a theory for now.

North Yorkshire Police said they had not been contacted by Mr Clark. The force reopened the Sutton Bank investigation on the 30th birthday of the find in 2011, and exhumed the body last year. Several families came forward believing they may be able to identify the woman, but attempts to identify her through DNA were inconclusive.