A MAN has been arrested in connection with the Lady of the Hills cold case murder mystery.
A 61-year-old man was detained by police more than 20 years after the partially clothed body of Lamduan Armitage, 36, was found in a mountain stream.
He is currently in custody in the UK and is set to be quizzed over the intriguing murder mystery.
The dramatic breakthrough came just after 10pm on Saturday night.
It happened a few hours after The Sun revealed that her husband David had pledged to return to the UK in a bid to clear his name.
The retired university lecturer has long protested his innocence over the murder of the mother of his two children.
When located by The Sun in a remote area of Thailand in 2019, he firmly denied any involvement in the claims made by Lamduan’s family, stating, “Absolutely not…no…absolutely not.”
“I know the inferences are there but I am just getting on with my life here.”
A representative from North Yorkshire Police mentioned that a 61-year-old man, not identified by name, has been taken into custody on suspicion of Lamduan Armitage’s murder in 2004 and continues to be questioned by authorities.
The mystery began on September 20, 2004, when hikers doing the Three Peaks found the partially-clothed body of a woman near Pen-y-ghent.
A post-mortem failed to establish a cause of death although she had not been shot, stabbed or drowned.
During that period, authorities could not ascertain her identity, leading local villagers to refer to her as the Lady of the Hills. These compassionate villagers organized a funeral for her in the neighboring village of Horton-in Ribblesdale.
A cold case review finally led to her being identified in 2019 when a relative living in the UK saw an artist’s impression in a police appeal and alerted detectives.
Yorkshire-born David, 61, married Lamduan in 1991 after meeting her in Chiang Mai.
They moved to the UK and lived in Portsmouth where he taught at a further education college while Lamduan washed dishes at a Thai restaurant.
They later moved to Rugby, Warwickshire, and by the summer of 2004 were staying with his parents in Cumbria.
Her mother Joomsri told how she last heard from Lamduan in a phone call in 2004.
She said: “She said she missed home so much. It was a very short call. We’ve not heard from her since.”
Armitage moved back to Thailand with their two children in 2004.
He worked at a university in Kanchanaburi where the famous war movie The Bridge on the River Kwai was set.
He was detained last week by immigration cops after his residency visa was revoked.
Although free to travel anywhere once he was deported from Thailand he was said to have been set on returning to the UK to clear his name after being persuaded to by his son George, 32, and his Thai girlfriend.
He has always denied any involvement in Lamduan’s death.
The North Yorkshire Police spokesperson added: “We strongly urge the media and public to refrain from speculation about the case to ensure fair justice can be delivered.
“We also urge the media to respect the rights and privacy of those connected to the case, including family members.”
