The family of Susan Rushworth tonight urged triple killer Stephen Griffiths to confess what he had done with her body so they can finally lay her to rest. Miss Rushworth, 43, was the first of the three murders to which Griffiths, 40, yesterday pleaded guilty.

But no trace of her has yet been found since she was last seen in June, 2009.

Speaking on behalf of her family after Griffiths was jailed, her mother Christine Thompson said: “Susan went missing more than 12 months ago and as a family we still don’t know where she is.

“We know that Griffiths has admitted to killing our daughter and there is evidence to confirm that. As a family we have not been able to put our daughter to rest because she has not been found so we want to appeal to this man to tell us what he has done with Susan."

Nicky Blamires, Suzanne’s mother, said: “Stephen Griffiths is a coward and we are shocked he pleaded guilty as it is not something I thought he would have the courage to do.

“Our daughter was deeply loved and her death has left a huge hole in our lives.

“This will be the first Christmas we have spent without Suzanne in 36 years and I know I will never get over her loss."

Gill Armitage, Shelley’s mother, said: “As a family we would like to take this opportunity to thank the police for their work from the start of this terrible tragedy to hunt for our daughter Shelley-Marie Armitage.

“Our daughter Shelley was very much loved and will be very sadly missed by us all. Unfortunately she took the wrong path at the young age of 16 when she became a victim of heroin.

“Her death will haunt us for the rest of our lives.”

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