31-07-2025
Mystery as human body is found in medieval cave at beauty spot - as police launch investigation
Police have launched an investigation after a human body was found in a medieval cave at an Essex beauty spot.
Officers were sent to search deneholes at Hangman's Woods in Grays after receiving a call just after 2.05pm on Tuesday from a person who discovered the corpse.
Essex Police are now working to identify the deceased person and attempting to figure out how they came to be in the deneholes and how they died.
Deneholes are a system of branching chalk caves, entered through vertical shafts, which were used as mines during medieval times.
The deneholes at Hangman's Woods are a Scheduled Monument and regarded as the best preserved set in existence.
They are particularly deep compared to others around the UK, with some shafts tunnelling more than 20m deep before reaching chalk.
Many of the Hangman's Woods deneholes have been infilled, but some remain open.
Fencing is in place around area as it is a biological Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) for the colony of bats that use it as an underground hibernation hub.
Whilst the public are generally not allowed to access the denehole site, it is possible to request permission from the council.
Detective Inspector Lydia George said: 'Utilising specialist equipment and skills and working with our partners, we recovered a body yesterday [Tuesday].
'Work is underway to establish who they are and the circumstances around how they came to be in the deneholes and how they died.
'I want to thank the community around this area for their support, particularly local businesses who kindly provided refreshments.
'We will provide further information as and when we are able to.'
