Suitcase body was 94-year-old refugee

Thea Zaudy, a wealthy German-born widow, was discovered last week behind a manure heap in an Oxfordshire field - almost 50 miles from her West London home.

Last night police were refusing to comment on a motive for the killing but detectives are investigating the possibility Mrs Zaudy was the victim of a robbery.

The suitcase was dumped in a field at Milton Common, near Thame, and set alight.

The spot is near Oxfordshire Golf Club and three miles from celebrity chef Raymond Blanc's world-renowned restaurant and hotel Le Manoir aux Quat'Saisons.

Four people are being quizzed by Thames Valley Police over the murder.

Neighbours in Notting Hill said the widow, who was less than 5ft tall, hailed from Germany but had lived in Britain since the 1930s when she came here after the rise of Hitler.

Lisl Wertheim, 83, a friend who played bridge with Mrs Zaudy twice a week, said she had raised the alarm after the pensioner failed to turn up for their latest game.

Mrs Wertheim said when she went to her friend's £800,000 home, it looked as though somebody had given it a "thorough" clean.

She said: "I was very worried when she didn't turn up so I asked her carer to come and let me into her flat.

"The flat was immaculate, very very clean which was unusual because as she's 94, it's usually a bit messy.

"It looked as if someone had thoroughly cleaned it for some reason and one of the windows was open.

"She would never open the window. I was really worried and called the police.

"The last time I saw her was ten days ago and she had two young nieces over to visit her from Sweden. She said they were having a lovely time."

Mrs Wertheim said her friend did not have many visitors and "wasn't particularly sociable".

She added: "Thea was always smartly dressed and sprightly although she walked with a stick.

"It's amazing really someone of her age was still living alone and was so independent. She didn't ask anyone for help."

Police confirmed she was a British citizen who had lived alone since the death of her husband in 1965 aged 58.

He is believed to have owned a carpet store. The couple did not have any children.

The four people arrested include two women, aged 19 and 41, who were held on Wednesday along with a 38-year-old man. A 23-year-old man was also detained.

A Thames Valley Police spokesman said all were from London. The older three were on suspicion of murder.

The younger woman was being quizzed on suspicion of conspiracy to murder. The spokesman said they were not relatives of Mrs Zaudy, whose family lives abroad.

Mrs Zaudy's body was found by two farmers who were inspecting the manure heap last Friday afternoon.

Witnesses saw flames the night before but dismissed it as a bonfire.

The field lies close to the M40 and officers suspect the body may have been driven some distance before being dumped and that Mrs Zaudy was killed before she was set alight.

At the weekend police admitted they had no idea who the victim was but knew she would have walked with a stoop as the post-mortem examination revealed she had a curvature of the spine and arthritis.