Overview
- Durham Constabulary opened two separate murder investigations after emergency crews found a woman dead in a flat above The Greyhound pub in Darlington and a man with stab wounds at a house on Thames Road in Peterlee.
- Police detained a 44-year-old on suspicion of murder and a 27-year-old on suspicion of assisting an offender in the Darlington case, and two people remain in custody in Peterlee with a third person released under investigation.
- Officers and white-suited forensic teams established cordons at both scenes and continued detailed examinations into Saturday, with detectives urging anyone with information to contact police using incident numbers 521 (Darlington) and 582 (Peterlee).
- Local reporting has identified the Darlington victim as Leanne, a care worker whose death has prompted floral tributes and a community fundraising page that has raised several thousand pounds, and the Peterlee victim as Dean Fishwick.
- The two incidents occurred on Wednesday night and are being treated as unrelated by investigators, who say enquiries are active and the public should report any relevant information to Durham Constabulary or Crimestoppers.