Murdered mother death link probed

The man was found tied to Beverley Payne's Mercedes

Police hunting the murderer of an aerobics instructor have said her death may be linked to a man who died after driving her Mercedes into a marina.

Divorced mother-of-two Beverley Payne, 21, was found stabbed to death next to her children at her home in Priory Court, in Bryncoch near Neath, on Wednesday.

Beverley Payne had been stabbed in the chest

The discovery came hours after a mystery man drove her car into the Prince of Wales marina at Swansea docks.

Twenty detectives are working on the murder hunt at an incident room in Port Talbot and the woman's boyfriend - the registered owner of the silver SLK Coupé - is due to fly back from business in South America on Thursday.

Steering wheel

Witnesses said the man in the car tied himself to the steering wheel and accelerated off the quayside at 0800hrs BST on Wednesday.

Four hours later, a caller at the house in Bryncoch was answered by Beverley Payne's three-year-old son and shown his mother's body.

She had suffered stab wounds to the chest and, together with his 11-month-old sister, the boy had spent hours alone with the body.

Both children were unhurt and are being cared for by relatives.

Police were making house-to-house inquiries in the area in to Wednesday evening.

'Possible link'

Detective Chief Inspector Wynne Phillips of South Wales Police CID said: "There is a possible link between this incident and the earlier incident in Swansea.

"The investigation is still in the early stages and we would welcome any further information."

The family moved in to their home in Priory Court during Easter and the death of Beverley Payne has shocked neighbours.

Neighbour Sharon Johns, 34, said: "This has shocked everyone here.

"It's just a tragedy. They seemed like a very nice family with everything going for them.

"They had a new baby, a lovely little boy, a new house, and a very nice car. We cannot understand what went on there."