POLICE have arrested a man on suspicion of murder after a headless body was found in the river Thames.

The female body, which is missing its head and both hands, was discovered in a laundry bag, floating in the South Dock Marina, a mile upstream from Greenwich on Thursday.

The victim is thought to be aged between her late teens and early 20s and tests are still being conducted to confirm her ethnicity, although detectives say she is definitely not black.

She is of a slim to medium build and is between 5ft 5 and 5ft 6 tall.

She had long brown hair and when she was found she was wearing the following:

  • A black zip-up nylon quilted jacket with a press-stud detachable hood, elasticised sleeves and a small white NIKE tick on the left breast and a larger orange NIKE tick on the back with a white border. The label says size XL Height 164-176 (F503 - F507)
  • A pink bra, which has a face of a silver cat on the right cup and a silver decorative charm of a cat between the cups. The label says: 6IXTY 8IGHT.
  • A two-tier cream, lacelike mini-skirt with a brown label saying 'Mug modern living'.

A post-mortem examination held at Greenwich mortuary on Friday gave the cause of death as neck injuries caused by a sharp instrument.

The missing body parts have not yet been found.

A Southwark man was arrested on the day of the discovery and has been bailed to return to a police station next month.

The bag the victim was found in is described as red and white with small checks resembling a tartan pattern and is made of treated plastic.

It has thin plastic handles, closes with a zip and measures around 3ft by 2ft.

Detective Chief Inspector Carl Mehta is appealing to people who may have seen anyone with a bag matching this description in the vicinity of the marina.

DCI Mehta said: "This is the description we are working to at the moment and our enquiries are continuing to try to find out who the woman is.

"I would urge anyone who may recognise her or indeed the clothing she was wearing to come forward and contact us.

"I am very keen to find out as much as possible about the victim.

"She could be local, she could be from out of the area and was just visiting.

"I want to hear from anyone in the area or the neighbouring boroughs who may know anything or have seen something."

Police do not yet know when the woman died or how long she was in the water for.

Anyone with any information is asked to call 0208 345 3734 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 if they wish to remain anonymous.

  • The discovery of this body has echoes of the still-unsolved torso in the Thames case.

The torso of a young African boy, named Adam by police, was found floating in the river near Tower Bridge, in September 2001.

Officers heading up the international murder hunt suspect the boy, aged five or six, was killed in an African cult ritual.