Police have revealed that human tissue recovered from the River Aire over the weekend is that of Bradford woman Shelley Armitage.

Officers have said exhaustive forensic tests carried out on the small piece of human tissue confirmed it is of the missing vice girl Miss Armitage.

A West Yorkshire Police spokesman said the family of Miss Armitage had been informed and searches and further forensic tests were ongoing.

The spokesman said: “Further exhaustive forensic tests carried out on a small piece of human tissue recovered from the River Aire over the weekend, have confirmed that it is that of Shelley Armitage.

“Shelley’s family have been informed.

“Searches are continuing, as are ongoing forensic tests.

“This includes ongoing forensic work on the black holdall and contents recovered at the weekend.”

Earlier yesterday, underwater search teams and forensic officers continued painstaking examinations of sites across the Bradford district in the hunt for Miss Armitage and Susan Rushworth.

West Yorkshire Police’s Underwater Search Unit was combing a number of sites on the River Aire, extending from the area in Shipley where the remains of Suzanne Blamires were found.

Blue-suited officers were still at a derelict site behind Stephen Griffiths’ flat, in Holmfield Court, Thornton Road, close to Bradford city centre, while boxes of items were being removed for further examination from his third floor flat.

Other forensic officers were carrying out painstaking searches of other sites in the city centre, including utility company excavations.

Forensic experts dressed in white could be seen making their way to the rear of the flats while residents and visitors were asked to sign in and out of the building by an officer stood by its front door.

David Myres, of St Andrew’s Villas, a friend of Shelley Armitage’s partner Craig Preston, knelt in front of the floral tributes laid in front of Holmfield Court flats, the home of murder-accused Stephen Griffiths, and said a prayer.

Afterwards he said: “He (Mr Preston) doesn’t know what’s happening. He doesn’t know what’s going on. He keeps saying ‘where’s my Shelley?’ It’s disgusting. Why would somebody do this? My daughter’s 18. She’s not a prostitute but it makes you think. It upsets me and it angers me.”

Another passer-by, who said he had known Shelley Armitage by sight, stopped to read the messages of condolence attached to the flowers. “It’s the people in there I feel sorry for,” he said, pointing to the flats. “Bradford has an air of darkness about it now,” he added.

Self-proclaimed “Crossbow Cannibal” Stephen Griffiths has been charged with the murders of Miss Armitage, 31, 36-year-old Suzanne Blamires, and Susan Rushworth, 43.