Woman walks into police station saying she killed her father years ago and buried him in back garden

Police have begun digging up a garden in Greater Manchester after a 63-year-old woman walked into a police station and said she had killed her father and buried his body.

Greater Manchester Police (GMP) has launched a murder inquiry after she walked into Cheadle Heath Police Station on Sunday (7 January).

On Tuesday, specialist officers established a crime scene and began an investigation that centred on a garden in Matlock Road, Reddish, Greater Manchester.

The woman said she killed her father "a number of years ago". Police say that a body has not yet been found but enquiries are ongoing and the man's family, who are being supported by specially trained officers, have been informed.

The Telegraph reported that mother-of-one Barbara Coombes was the woman arrested and she was questioned by detectives on suspicion of murdering her father Kenneth, who would have been 100 years old this year.

Detective Inspector Dan Clegg from GMP's Major Incident Team, said: "Following the report, we've made a number of other inquiries and have today, with help from specialist officers, began searching in the garden.

"It's still very early days in our investigation but I'd like to thank the public so far for their support in allowing us to carry out our enquiries, I'm sure this has been worrying for people in the local area."

One resident of the Stockport road, Ann Millar, told the MailOnline that the woman had lived in the house with her father for years.

"She is a lovely woman who has lived in that house for years with her dad and daughter. I never saw her live with a husband," she said.

"She never gave any impression that she had a dark past and I can't believe she would be capable of something like this.

"I used to see her in the morning walking her dog and always stopped to say hello."