Police find murder weapon

Eric Hingston was stabbed when he confronted burglars

Police investigating the murder of an 83-year-old man in Devon last month say they have recovered the murder weapon.

It has now been sent away for examination by forensic scientists.

Crimestoppers is now offering a £10,000 reward to help find the killer of Eric Hingston, who was stabbed in his Plymouth home.

Mr Hingston is believed to have confronted burglars at his house in Plympton.

The investigation is disciplined, it's focussed and we're confident Detective Chief Inspector Tony Carney

Despite numerous appeals for information from anyone who was in the Underwood Road area at the time of the murder, the police have yet to catch Mr Hingston's killer.

Mr Hingston was stabbed on 29 August at the flat he shared with his wife, Audrey, after getting out of bed to confront the burglars.

They fled and Mrs Hingston found her husband bleeding on the floor.

Mr Hingston was taken to Derriford Hospital in Plymouth, but was pronounced dead on arrival.

Bob Widdecombe, the regional chairman of Crimestoppers, said the reward was justified because the crime was so serious.

He said: "We believe the size of reward will tempt somebody who has got information, because it's absolutely certain that more than one person knows who committed this crime."

Meanwhile, Detective Chief Inspector Tony Carney is confident that Mr Hingston's killer will be caught.

He said: "The investigation has still got the same number of detectives and officers working on it as it had on day one.

"A number of lines of enquiry have been exhausted, but we now have other lines of enquiry.

"The investigation is disciplined, it's focussed and we're confident we will arrest the offenders."