Murdered Dudley woman was identified by DNA and dental records, inquest hears
An inquest into a woman found murdered after she was reported missing - sparking an intensive police hunt - has been opened.
Warehouse operative Julia Rawson, who shared a house in Green Park Road in Kates Hill, Dudley, was last seen alive on May 12.
Her remains were discovered a month later in a secluded area near an industrial estate in Tipton.
Nathan Maynard-Ellis, 29, of Mission Drive, Dudley Port, Tipton and 24-year-old David Leesley, of Dereton Close, Russells Hall, Dudley, have both pleaded not guilty to murder.
Detective Inspector Jim Colclough, of the West Midlands Police homicide team, told the inquest that the victim, a 42-year-old former Dudley market stall holder, was identified by her dental records and DNA.
Tissue samples have since been sent to a number of specialists across the UK for analysis, with the results not expected back until November, leading to a delay in the trial, said Mr Colclough.
The cause of the victim's death remains unknown despite a forensic post mortem.
The murder trial is set for January next year at Wolverhampton Crown Court, with a pre-trial hearing due on October 14.
Black Country coroner Zafar Siddique adjourned the hearing into Ms Rawson, who was single and originally from Tittensor, near Stone, pending the outcome of the criminal investigation. Her family did not attend the inquest, held in Oldbury.
