The location where Tania Nicol was found

Crime Scene Location in Ipswich, Suffolk, England

This is the location where Tania Nicol was found.

Nicol was the first known victim of the Suffolk Strangler, Steve Wright. The 19-year-old sex worker was last seen hanging around her usual spot in Ipswich's red light district at around 11 p.m. on October 30th, 2006.

Exactly 39 days later, on December 8th, 2006, a police dive team discovered her remains at this section of the Belstead Brook River. The site in question is situated on the southern side of Old London Road, near the Copdock Mill in Ipswich, England.

Nicol left home when she was 16 and became addicted to heroin.

Initially, she funded her habit by working in a massage parlor. However, the owners eventually fired her due to her drug use.

After losing her job at the parlor, she began selling her services on the streets. Her family was unaware that she had become involved in the sex industry, as they were under the impression that she was working as a barmaid or hairdresser.

Nicol was the second victim to be found. The discovery of her body confirmed suspicions that there was a potential serial killer on the loose.

Six days prior, a member of the public had spotted the remains of Gemma Adams in the same river, just a few miles northwest of this location.

Adams was a 25-year-old sex worker who had also disappeared from Ipswich under suspicious circumstances.

The authorities now had two victims with similar backgrounds who had been found in the exact same waterway. Furthermore, the whereabouts of a third woman named Anneli Alderton were still unknown.

Map — Police divers were searching the Belstead Brook waterway for the belongings of Gemma Adams when they found Nicol's remains near the Copdock Mill. The cause of death could not be determined due to the passage of time.

By the time Nicol's body was discovered, national news agencies were already preparing to send their reporters to Ipswich.

One woman was dead, while another was missing. News editors were aware that a big story was potentially brewing, either because they noticed a possible connection themselves or they received a tip-off from local sources.

Although Nicols was found at this section of Belstead Brook, it is possible that she was dumped further upstream, as the area had recently experienced heavy rainfall and flooding.

Where was Tania Nicol found?

The address and the GPS coordinates for this location are as follows:

Address

London Road, Ipswich, Suffolk, IP8 3LA, England

Map

To view directions on how to get there, you can use the Google Maps shortcut below:

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GPS coordinates

The latitude and longitude coordinates for the river are:

52.036555, 1.090180

Directions

The site is roughly 135 feet north of the junction between London Road and Mill Road.

Details about the general area

It is situated near the village of Copdock on the southwestern outskirts of Ipswich.

Photos

Photos of the river and other related images.

Tania Nicol was last seen at the bottom of Burlington Road in Ipswich

Nicol was last seen on the corner of Handford Road and Burlington Road, which is in the red light district of Ipswich.

The Daily Telegraph published a map that placed her near the junction of London Road and Burlington Road. However, the map in question contains conflicting information, as it also states that she was last seen outside a Sainsbury's service station that is half a mile west of that location.

It appears as though the author mistakenly used one of the first, publicly known sightings of the victim. That, or it was created before further details were released during Steve Wright's murder trial.

In February 2008, jurors were shown CCTV footage of Nicol getting into a dark blue car at the junction of Handford Road and Burlington Road. It was also noted that the 19-year-old often stood at this location.

At the time of the killings, Wright drove a dark blue Ford Mondeo.

Wright admitted that he picked Nicol on the night of October 30th, 2006. He claimed that the pair drove around the corner to Portman Road, but that he quickly changed his mind due to her acne.

Coordinates: 52.057869, 1.141802

Google Maps

Wright said that he brought the victim to Portman Road

Wright said that he brought Nicol to Portman Road, but that he changed his mind about using her services after he noticed her acne.

The police said that the victim's phone went dead shortly before midnight on October 30th, which was the same time that a security camera captured him picking her up in his Ford Mondeo (bottom-right).

Portman Road is a football stadium. It is the home ground of Ipswich Town F.C. At the time, the streets around the stadium were considered to be part of Ipswich's red light district.

Fibers found on Nicol's body were later proven to be a match with the fibers on Wright's couch, the upholstery in his car, and his reflective jacket. No DNA was found on her remains, as she had been submerged in water for more than five weeks.

In February 2008, Wright was convicted of her murder and sentenced to life in prison.

Coordinates: 52.054493, 1.146410

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