Police hunting the killer of a woman and her elderly mother have confirmed that they were both strangled to death.
The bodies of Tesco check-out worker Angela Holgate, 54, and her mother Alice Huyton, 75, were found at a house in Southport, Lancs, on Saturday.
Police officially declared that they were treating both deaths as murder and posted an international "wanted" alert for Angela's missing lodger Barry Morrow.
A post-mortem report found that both women had been asphyxiated at her semi-detached home in Churchtown.
Angela had lived at the house in Fairhaven Road for more than 20 years.
Morrow arrived at the address earlier this year when he moved-in to live with Angela as her 'partner'. Their relationship broke-down but he stayed-on as a lodger.
Detectives have posted an international "wanted" appeal for missing lodger Barry Morrow, who has not been seen since the women's bodies were discovered at 5.45pm on Saturday.
Engineer Morrow, 51, is known to have travelled from Dover to Calais last week and has connections connections in France and Spain where he is thought to have owned property in the past.
Detectives are examining the theory that Mrs Huyton was invited round to the house in Fairhaven Road after she made a phone call expressing concern about her daughter when she did not hear from her for several days
Police say they urgently want to speak to Morrow and were expected to issued an arrest warrant for him through Interpol.
Morrow is described as 5ft 7in tall, of medium to stocky build with straight, short brown receding hair and blue eyes.
Detectives also issued an alert for a white Citroen - registration PN11 RWK - which belonged to Angela and which Morrow is known to have been driving.
Chief Supt Nikki Holland, of Merseyside Police said: "We are investigating the tragic deaths of these two women which we are treating them as murder.
"The discovery of the bodies was made by Mrs Holgate's son-in-law. Naturally the whole family is very upset and our sympathies go out to them at this time.
"Officers are investigating the circumstances around thee deaths and are trying to piece together the women’s last movements.
"We are appealing to anyone with any information that may help us with this investigation to come forward as soon as possible.
"In particular we are keen to trace Barry Morrow, who lived at the house for a period of time and who we believe may have information that is vital to this investigation.
"We know that he travelled from Dover to Calais on ferry and that he was driving Angela's white Renault Clio. It we are appealing for him to get in touch with police as soon as possible."
Divorcee Angela, who had also worked part-time as an "Avon lady", selling cosmetics, has two grown-up daughters.
One Tesco shopper, Laura Green, 42, said: "Angela was a lovely lady who would always greet you with a smile and say 'hello'.
"She was very popular and had lots of friends and knew a lot of people through working at Tesco and as an Avon lady.
"She certainly and her mother certainly did not deserve to die like this at the hands of such a cruel and calculating killer."
A neighbour described Morrow as short but powerfully-built and told how he recently did some paving work for Angela in the front driveway.
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