Tragedy rocks village as 'charismatic' church warden found dead after burglary
A murder probe was launched after the death of a woman in her 80s following reports of a burglary.
The woman - named locally as Beryl 'Bez' Purdy - was found at the property in Broomfield, near Bridgwater in Somerset at around 5.45pm on Monday.
Officers were called following a report of a burglary in progress and found the elderly woman badly injured.
Despite officers and paramedics best efforts, she sadly died at the scene.
Police say a man in his 30s arrested was sectioned under the Mental Health Act.
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They added a mandatory conduct referral has been made to the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) concerning the action taken following a missing person report made earlier in the day.
A man in his 30s was arrested (Daniel Jae Webb / SWNS)Specialist crime scene investigators were last night combing the property.
Bez, married to Peter, is listed as booking secretary of Broomfield Village Hall.
One neighbour told the BBC: "Bez was a charismatic person and a devoted member of our community having been our church warden for as long as we can remember."
Neighbourhood Chief Insp Justin French said: "Our thoughts remain with the family during this incredibly difficult time and they are being supported by specially trained family liaison officers.
Flowers left for Beverly (Daniel Jae Webb / SWNS)"Incidents of this kind are rare and understandably can cause concern among the community.
"Our officers will be out and about conducting reassurance patrols and we encourage people to speak to them with any questions and concerns they may have.
"A man in his 30s was arrested in connection with the incident.
"He was assessed by a mental health professional and was deemed not fit for interview or to be detained in police custody.
The arrested man was transferred to a secure mental health unit (Daniel Jae Webb / SWNS)"He was sectioned last night under section two of the Mental Health Act and has been transferred to a secure mental health unit.
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"Detectives from MCIT continue to carry out a full and thorough investigation and the public can expect to see an increased police presence in the area for the next few days."
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