Murder suspect may be in Ireland

A MAN suspected of abducting and killing a woman in England is believed to have fled to Ireland.

Martin Stafford is wanted by West Midlands police investigating the disappearance of 38-year-old mother of two Michelle Gunshon, who vanished on December 4. No body has been found.

Investigators have named Mr Stafford as their prime suspect. He is believed to have travelled to Dublin, where he has family, shortly after Ms Gunshon disappeared.

The missing woman, who was working as a security guard for the BBC in Birmingham, was staying in the Dubliner Pub in the city, where Mr Stafford was also staying.

Detective Chief Inspector Andy Hough, who is in charge of the investigation, said the suspect caught the 11pm coach from Digbeth station in Birmingham on Wednesday, December 8, arriving in Dublin at 7am the following day. He may then have travelled to another part of the country.

Police have identified Mr Stafford, who is known as Matthew or Matty and is in his late 30s, as the man caught on two speed cameras on December 7 driving Ms Gunshon’s Ford Escort.

The car was found on the outskirts of Birmingham on December 7, bloodstained, muddied, and with grass and leaves on the bonnet and underneath. DNA from Ms Gunshon’s toothbrush identified the blood as hers.

Tracy Richardson, 21, Ms Gunshon’s daughter, said: “I have lost hope of my mum coming home.”