Murdered teenager was strangled

Murdered teenager was strangled

Hannah was last seen as she waved goodbye to a friend

A post-mortem examination on the body of murdered 17-year-old Hannah Foster has revealed she was strangled.

Hannah was last seen in Portswood, Southampton, on Friday night as she walked home from a pub.

Her body was discovered on Sunday in undergrowth in Allington Lane, West End.

She was found fully clothed and the Home Office pathologist has now confirmed there was no evidence of sexual assault.

The post-mortem examination revealed that Hannah died of "compression to the neck".

The A-level student was only half a mile from her home in Grosvenor Road when police believe she was abducted.

Her parents, Trevor and Hilary Foster, formally identified their daughter's body at the Royal Hampshire County Hospital in Winchester on Monday.

The murder inquiry team, led by Detective Inspector Tony Adams, has now been increased to more than 100 officers, including forensic search detectives.

They have been carrying out examinations near her home and at the area where her body was found.

Detectives are also scouring hours of CCTV footage to try to trace Hannah's last movements.

Detective Inspector Adams said Hampshire Police was liaising with officers involved with the Milly Dowler murder inquiry in Surrey - although there was not thought to be a link at this stage.

The main line of inquiry being followed is that the killer was not known to Hannah, but detectives are not ruling out the possibility that it could be a friend.

They are checking possible links with other sex crimes in the area where she disappeared.