A woman who told police she had killed a man has been charged with murder after human remains were found buried in her garden.

Barbara Coombes, 63, of Reddish, Stockport, has also been charged with preventing the lawful and decent burial of a dead body, fraud by false representation and obtaining a pecuniary advantage.

Her father, Kenneth Coombes, has not been seen for 10 to 15 years.

Image: The remains found in the garden have not yet been formally identified

Officers have been handing neighbours a questionnaire saying they are investigating his death.

Police found the human remains after Coombes walked into a police station at the weekend and told officers she had killed a man and buried his body in her back garden.


The remains have not yet been formally identified and the result of a post-mortem examination is still to be disclosed.

Detective Inspector Dan Clegg, from Greater Manchester Police, said: "I would like to thank the community for their support as we continue to carry out our inquiries and we would like to reassure them that this is being treated incredibly seriously and we will do all that we can to find out what happened."

Coombes appeared at Manchester and Salford Magistrates' Court on Thursday morning for a brief appearance.

Wearing black-rimmed glasses and a brown woolly jumper, she spoke only to confirm her name, address and date of birth.