UK UK - Sudbury, Suffolk, River Stour, Male, athletic or muscular build, in bin bags, Aug'20

[Susikatze]

Yes, the stones are pretty and do look like they came from somebody's collection, also they are small and hard to imagine any would think they helped to hold the bag down.
Wondering if those stones had once been used by a Jewish person as a visitation stone at a grave? speculation, imo.fwiw

Visitation stones - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

View attachment 453531

Alecia Milano on June 21, 2022

Why Do People Put Stones On Graves? Here Are 5 Reasons

People have been placing stones on graves and memorials for thousands of years. Take a look at five reasons behind this cemetery tradition.

www.milanomonuments.com

''A Jewish tradition that’s stood the test of time, placing stones on a loved one’s grave dates as far back as biblical times.
In fact, for thousands of years, people memorialized their loved ones by stacking stones—known as cairns—on top of their graves to mark the burial site and protect them from animals. Historically, Jewish families would also leave piles of rocks on graves to warn priests away, a tradition that stemmed from the idea that if a priest came within four feet of a lost loved one, he would make them impure.
While the exact origins of this custom are unclear, it’s still regularly practiced today—albeit, with several different meanings. Below, we explore five reasons families and friends place stones on their loved ones’ graves.''

No. We go great lengths to bury our dead asap and we take ordinary stones.
This looks like a mineral/semiprecious gem collection or pretty river gravel. To weigh the guy down somewhere maybe? Or just he may have been stored together with random items and then everything was disposed of.

 

[TootsieFootsie]

Yes the stones look a lot like some that I have that I bought because I liked the look of them.
They look polished.

 

[RobinCAL]

Thank you for the updates !

 

[dotr]

.

 

[Antonia]

It's interesting that the air fresheners and carrier bags date from soon after the estimated period when the man died, rather than being more recent - so it appears that the body parts were placed in the carrier bags with the air fresheners soon after death, rather than shortly before being placed in the river.

Extract from Suffolk Police:

Sudbury – Update on case of human remains found in river

Detectives investigating the discovery of human remains in a Sudbury river over three years ago are now releasing more details about the case.

www.suffolk.police.uk

"Within the black bags were carrier bags containing the bricks and decorative stones. These included a white ‘Thing-Me-Bobs’ bag (the style of which was produced between 2013 and 2015); a ‘Boots’ bag from circa 2012; and generic blue carrier bags – typically used by market traders.


"A number of air fresheners – the type of which that are for commercial use in toilets – were also found in the bags with the remains. These were found to have been a business-to-business janitorial product made by Jeyes, at a factory in Mold, North Wales, and became obsolete around 2011."

 

[JerricaBenton]

How many Thing-Me-Bobs shops are there in the area? I know nearby Haverhill has one - are they a chain?

 

[ChatteringBirds]

Bumping case up. Can anyone find a law enforcement link still up for this case? The link in post #13 no longer works.

 

[Clarebear117]

Bumping case up. Can anyone find a law enforcement link still up for this case? The link in post #13 no longer works.

https://www.suffolk.police.uk/news/...date-on-case-of-human-remains-found-in-river/

This was the only one I could find

 

[Antonia]

There are various new articles and an appeal for more information on the fifth anniversary of the discovery of the bones.

Man still unidentified after bones found in 2020

Man remains unidentified after bones found in Sudbury in 2020

Police say they have carried out a "vast" number of inquiries since the discovery.

www.bbc.co.uk

I wondered if they had done any isotope analysis to establish where the man grew up, but apparently not.

It's another really sad case - someone who's been gone for so many years, but hasn't been missed?

 

[RobinCAL]

There are various new articles and an appeal for more information on the fifth anniversary of the discovery of the bones.

Man still unidentified after bones found in 2020

Man remains unidentified after bones found in Sudbury in 2020

Police say they have carried out a "vast" number of inquiries since the discovery.

www.bbc.co.uk

I wondered if they had done any isotope analysis to establish where the man grew up, but apparently not.

It's another really sad case - someone who's been gone for so many years, but hasn't been missed?

A kind of commercial air freshener block that became obsolete in 2011 were dumped with the human remains

 

[dotr]

Bones found in the river Stour remain unidentified five years after discovery

A man who was the victim of a murder is still unknown to Suffolk police, five...

hellorayo.co.uk

Aug 27 2025 rbbm.
'Detectives have theorised that the man was targeted by an organised crime group, however no one has ever been charged with his murder.''
“The DNA profile of the victim has been compared on both UK & international databases, but despite this the victim remains unidentified. We have also utilised the help of the National Crime Agency, regional partners and other specialists and experts from across the country.''

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May 13, 2024
'A segment from Crimewatch Live about the unidentified bodyparts of a murder victim found in Suffolk in 2020. Police suspect the victim died as early as 12 years before his bodyparts were dumped in the River Stour.'

 

[dotr]

https://www.itv.com/news/anglia/2025-08-27/fresh-appeal-as-organised-crime-bin-bag-body-murder-case-draws-blank

rbbm.

• Possible theories regarding the victim

''In 2023, police said the remains could have belonged to a victim of organised crime because of the "expertise" shown in the dismemberment of the body.
The arms of the man were found bent into the first bag and his legs in the second, with the feet pushed towards the shins.
Dive teams found another bag in the river, with more bone fragments such as the man's nose and a jaw with only two teeth.
Police said the skull also appeared to have injuries and there was a "serious level of violence" when the man was killed.''
''Police therefore believe the victim died between 2008 and 2012, with the body stored elsewhere before being dumped in the river years later.''