Woman's killer fled in taxi

Patricia Thompson's family said she would have been "defenceless"

A killer strangled a grandmother and then kept a taxi waiting outside as he set fire to her bungalow, police said.

The body of Patricia Thompson, 85, was found at her fire-damaged home in Stockton, Teesside, on 5 September.

Detectives have revealed a man calling himself Steven called a taxi from her bungalow at 2300 BST.

A man later emerged from the home and told the driver to wait for a couple of minutes. Officers believe he returned to torch the house to cover his tracks.

The man, in his mid-20s, was later dropped off at Redcar Road in South Bank after departing from Mrs Thompson's bungalow in Emma Simpson Court in Hartburn.

Det Supt Gordon Lang, of Cleveland Police, said: "We need information about the name Steven - at this stage we do not know if it is the man's real name and it may be an alias.

"This is an extremely positive lead and the pieces of the jigsaw are starting to come together.

"It is now only a matter of time before we track down this evil individual to face the consequences of his actions."

The man is described as white, between 5ft 11in and 6ft tall, of slim to medium build, with gingery brown-coloured hair, a long thin face, a thin nose and two to three days' worth of stubble.

He was wearing a light-coloured fleece type jacket, light blue jeans and white trainers.

One of his dark-coloured bags is described as hand luggage that was being wheeled.