A new £20,000 reward is being offered for any information that leads to the arrest of Thomas Dures.
Police have wanted to speak to the 20-year-old ever since the fatal stabbing of Matthew Daulby, who died last July.
The Lancashire Police and Crime Commissioner’s office has now decided to match the £10,000 reward offered up by Crimestoppers, meaning anyone who provides information leading to the arrest of Thomas Dures could claim a huge £20,000 reward.
In a statement released this week, officers said that it is ‘high time he does the right thing and hands himself in’.
They also stressed that whoever is ‘assisting him in evading arrest’ will also face the courts.
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Matthew Daulby, 19, was found a short distance away from an ongoing disturbance at Railway Road in Ormskirk at around 12.05am on 29 July 2023.
He was found with stab injuries and despite the efforts of the emergency services, died in hospital as a result of his injuries.
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In March, Henry Houghton, 19, was jailed for life after being found guilty of Matthew’s murder.
But officers still want to speak to Thomas Dures as part of their enquiries into his death.
DCI Andy Fallows, of the Force Major Investigation Team, said: “It has now been over 12 months since Matthew’s murder and although one man has been found guilty, his family’s wait for justice goes on.
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“Thomas Dures has known that my officers have wanted to speak to him for some time and while Matthew’s family continue to search for answers about what happened that night, Dures is out there about to celebrate his 21st birthday. It is high time he does the right thing and hands himself in.
“We know that people are assisting him in evading arrest. I want to make it clear to those people that we will ensure they are arrested and put before the courts.”
Clive Grunshaw, Police and Crime Commissioner for Lancashire said: “My decision to match the Crimestoppers reward to £20,000 makes clear Lancashire Constabulary’s commitment to deliver justice for Matthew Daulby’s family.
“We know that sometimes it’s difficult for people to go to the police about what they know – and that can be for a range of reasons including fear of intimidation or loyalties. Matthew’s family, together with the wider community, deserve to know what happened.”
The new, combined £20,000 reward is only available to people who pass on information exclusively to the charity Crimestoppers, either via their website or by calling 0800 555 111.
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If you know the location of Thomas Dures call 101, quoting log 1007 of July 29, 2023. For immediate sightings call 999.
Body of woman found in River Mersey last year finally identified after ‘extensive’ investigation
Emily Sergeant
The body of woman who was found in the River Mersey last year has finally been identified.
Following what has been described as an ‘extensive investigation’ by Greater Manchester Police‘s (GMP) Major Incident Team to determine the identity of the body, which was sadly discovered in the river adjacent to Chorlton Water Park on 21 March 2024, the family of the victim has now been informed and supported by specialist officers.
The victim has been formally named as 38-year-old Laura Stanley, who was originally from Derbyshire but was living in Stockport.
After the body was discovered, and ‘exhaustive and determined’ investigation by GMP officers began to identify here, including detailed checks of both national and international databases.
The Major Incident Team (MIT) also closely worked in collaboration with specialist forensic service providers to create an anthropological profile, which eventually culminated in the creation of a facial reconstruction image.
Following several media appeals, a relative of Laura contacted officers and then a DNA match was confirmed through a familial link.
“Laura was a kind and gentle person with a great sense of fun and adventure,” Laura’s family said in a heartbreaking tribute to her.
“She was generous, thoughtful, caring and always keen to volunteer within the community. Laura was a proud and loving mum and she will be greatly missed by her girls and all of her friends and family who loved her dearly.”
The River Mersey, across from Chorlton Water Park, where Laura’s body was discovered / Credit: Wikimedia Commons
While Laura has now been identified, police say further investigations will take place to understand her last movements, the events that led to her death, and her discovery in the river.
Additionally, as is standard practice, GMP’s Professional Standards Directorate is also reviewing a previous missing report relating to Laura in the time before the discovery of her body, which will determine prior contact relating to Laura, and whether the appropriate measures were enacted.
#UPDATE | A woman who was discovered in the River Mersey last year has been identified following an extensive investigation by officers in GMP’s Major Incident Team.
Thank you to those of you who have shared our appeals over the last year.
Anyone who knew Laura and thinks they may be able to assist with the investigation is asked to contact police by calling 101, or by using the Live Chat Service at gmp.police.uk, quoting log number 1191 of 21 March 2024.
Alternatively, you can contact the Major Incident Team Syndicate 3 directly on 0161 856 9479, or the independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.
It is currently believed that Laura was last seen around January 2024.
Featured Image – GMP
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More than 70,000 home buyers set to pay thousands after missing stamp duty relief deadline
Emily Sergeant
More than 70,000 home buyers across England are estimated to have missed the stamp duty relief deadline.
This sadly means they’ll be required to fork out thousands of pounds extra.
In case you hadn’t heard, up until yesterday (31 March 2025), anyone who was moving and had bought a home in the past was not required to pay Stamp Duty Land Tax, better-known as just stamp duty, on the portion of the property price up to £250,000.
But from today (1 April), this threshold has now fallen back to £125,000, which unfortunately means that property purchasers are facing an extra £2,500 in moving costs, on average.
While the end of the stamp duty relief will mostly affect those Greater Manchester buyers who had already previously purchased properties, first time buyers are sadly not exempt from the deadline changes too, as their current stamp duty threshold of £425,000 has now fallen back to £300,000 as of today.
Person holding the keys to a new house in their hand / Credit: Maria Ziegler (via Unsplash)
Given that the average property price for a first time buyer-type home is currently around £227,965, according to Rightmove, the new £300,000 threshold may hit those purchasing properties in more expensive areas – particularly the South East.
A third of those estimated 70,000 home buyers who have missed the deadline are thought to be first time buyers.
Leading property platform Rightmove published an analysis in February into just how much of an impact the end of the stamp duty relief would have on home buyers, all while calling on the UK Government to announce a short extension to the deadline to help people in the middle of the property purchasing process avoid potentially thousands of pounds in extra moving costs.
But despite these calls from industry leaders, there was no extension to the deadline announced in the last week’s latest Spring Statement.
“It’s extremely disappointing that the Government has not used the Spring Statement as an opportunity to extend the impending stamp duty deadline for those currently going through the home-moving process,” commented Rightmove’s property expert Colleen Babcock.
“We estimate over 70,000 people are going to miss the deadline and complete in April instead, and a third of those are first time buyers.”
Daisy Jackson -
20th August 2024 
