Clothing found in field led to discovery of missing teen's body

Jurors have been visiting the site where Gaia Pope's body was found

Image shows a field near Swanage where items of Gaia Pope's clothing was found
Author: George SharpePublished 18th May 2022
Last updated 19th May 2022

An inquest has heard the body of a missing teenager was found two days after women's clothing was discovered in an adjacent field.

Gaia Pope went missing on 7th November 2017 and was found 11 days later. She had died of hypothermia.

Gaia Pope was found near Dancing Ledge, the yellow marker indicates where items of Gaia's clothing were found, and the blue shows where Gaia's body was found.

The court heard two items of women's clothing were found on 16th November in a field near Dancing Ledge outside of Swanage.

The field is around a 2km walk from the outskirts of the town.

The next day a sock was found in an adjacent field at around 3pm. On the 18th at 3:15pm Gaia's body was discovered in nearby in heavy undergrowth.

The 19-year-old's disappearance sparked a huge police and volunteer search effort.

The inquest continues.

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