A TOUCHING tribute has been laid at the lonely spot near York where the bound and gagged body of a woman was discovered stuffed inside a suitcase.

Officers investigating the gruesome find in a hedgerow at the side of a country lane, between Askham Richard and Bilbrough, placed a bouquet at the scene as a mark of respect to the unidentified woman, who is thought to be of Asian or Oriental origin.

Det Insp Jon Reed said: "We felt that as a mark of respect to this lady we should lay some flowers at the place where she was left.

Five days of examinations of the scene, including a fingertip search, have been carried out since the discovery of the silver-grey case on Sunday.

Updated: 10:16 Saturday, November 24, 2001