South Yorkshire Police have begun excavating a field in Rotherham in a fresh attempt to find the body of Teresa Shephard, who was murdered more than 30 years ago. Shephard, 26, vanished from Sheffield in June 1995, and although her ex-boyfriend Peter Turner was convicted of her murder in 1996, her remains have never been recovered. The renewed search matters because it offers a possible chance, after three decades, to finally locate her body and bring some resolution for her family.

Officers are digging up a site off Piper Lane in Aston, Rotherham, situated between Shephard's former home in Basegreen, Sheffield, and Worksop, Nottinghamshire, where Turner lived at the time. Turner, now 54 and formerly of Doncaster Road, Worksop, was arrested after traces of Shephard's blood were found in his car, and he was jailed for life at Sheffield Crown Court in 1996 despite denying the murder. Police say the excavation is expected to continue for several days, and Shephard's family, who have been informed, have asked for their privacy to be respected.