Body of missing millionairess found in garage

Scotland Yard made the announcement following a post mortem.

Ms Waugh, 50, originally from Durham, was last seen by her family in mid-April. Concern grew after a fraudster tried to sell her £650,000 central London flat by posing as her brother.

Scotland Yard said the body was found in a garage in Lime Court, New Malden, southwest London, last night. Officers appealed for information about the blue Volkswagen Golf with the registration number W466 NHL in which her body was found.

A 47-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of kidnap and conspiracy to defraud and subsequently on suspicion of murder. He remains in custody at a south London police station. A warrant for further detention was granted at Croydon Magistrates’ Court yesterday, Scotland Yard said.

Missing for months

He family reported her missing on 7 May and 10 people have so far been arrested in connection with the investigation.

Ms Waugh, who lived in Libya, met men through a variety of dating websites and police said they were investigating the possibility that she might have been an escort.

Detective Chief Inspector John McFarlane said on Wednesday that Ms Waugh has not been seen alive since April 16 and a significant plundering of her estate has taken place since, to the value of hundreds of thousands of pounds.

Cartier jewellery missing

She lived alone in a central London flat in Marylebone. Ms Waugh’s Cartier jewellery went missing after her disappearance and thousands of pounds were withdrawn from her bank account.

One theory is that Ms Waugh was abducted by a gang who forced her to reveal bank account details and Pins for her cards.

There was a report of her shopping in central London on 4 May, but that was not confirmed. She had been planning a trip to Las Vegas to celebrate a friend’s 50th birthday.

Detectives say at least three women have tried to impersonate her – one at the Westfield shopping centre in west London on July 13.

Power cables to a CCTV camera pointing at her flat were cut in the lead-up to her disappearance.