A retired detective has said there may be a Brentford connection to the disappearance of estate agent Suzy Lamplugh more than 30 years ago.

A witness has said he saw the prime suspect, John Cannan, hurling a suitcase into the Grand Union Canal in Brentford three days after the estate agent vanished after leaving her office in Fulham in 1986.

Detective Jim Dickie headed the investigation and has told a national newspaper that he was told Cannan was seen disposing of the large case by a lorry driver on his way to work days after Suzy disappeared.

Mr Dickie said: "I believe the canal sighting is the best piece of information to have emerged about Suzy's potential whereabouts since she went missing more than 34 years ago.

"Suzy was petite and her body could have been put into a large case after her murder.

"The location of the canal offers easy access to the A4 and proximity to the bail hostel Cannan was released from days earlier."

The lorry driver reported the sighting to Brentford police station. The station was closed several years ago.

The Brent stretch of the canal where Cannan is said to have been spotted is dredged every few years and nothing has ever been found.

John Cannan was given a 35-year jail term in 1989 for the rape and murder of Shirley Banks,29, in Bristol.