Lyn Bryant - Police launch 20th anniversary murder appeal
Lyn Bryant was brutally murdered on Tuesday 20th October 1998 as she walked the family dog near her home in Ruan High Lanes on The Roseland. Lyn's body was found in a gateway of a field on an unclassified road near Ruan High Lanes Methodist Chapel. She had been stabbed a number of times in a prolonged attack.
On 15th October 2018 Devon and Cornwall Police launched a fresh public appeal for information to coincide with the 20th anniversary of the 40-year-old’s death.
Police conducted a full forensic review in 2015 where scientific advance brought about a critical breakthrough – a new partial DNA profile believed to belong to Lyn’s killer.
During the new appeal more than 160 calls and messages have been received by the investigation team via the incident room number and online police portal.
The information has provided police with 27 new viable lines of enquiry which are being progressed by detectives from the Major Crime Investigation Team.
Of those, detectives will be carrying out further investigation into 13 people - some new and some already known to the enquiry - who may now be asked to provide a DNA sample for elimination purposes.
Since October 2016 officers have been retaking DNA samples from people in the local area and across the UK. Some are selected from the National DNA Database while others are being drawn from the 6,000 individuals who gave DNA to the original enquiry.
All 6,000 are being systematically reviewed and new DNA samples are being taken from some to check them against the partial profile.
Senior Investigating Officer Stuart Ellis, a retired detective inspector from the Major Crime Investigation Team at Bodmin, praised the public response to the appeal.
“We are extremely grateful for the support from the public which has generated 27 new viable lines of enquiry. From that we have the names of 13 people who require further investigation and we may be asking them for a DNA sample for elimination purposes,” he said.
“Officers will now be pursuing all of those lines of enquiry. Our previous work to check individuals, both local and from around the UK, against our partial DNA profile will also continue for months to come. We have had a very positive reaction from those we have already approached for DNA during the investigation and we hope that co-operation continues.”
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