A 35-year-old woman found dead in a Leeds house has been named by police as Kirstie Ellis.
West Yorkshire Police have launched a murder investigation after the death of Kirstie, who has been described by her family as a "beautiful soul". A man and a woman, who are also both 35, have been arrested on suspicion of murder and remain in police custody.
Police have described Kirstie's death as a "tragic case" and confirmed that their early investigations show Kirstie's body had been in the property in Stanhall Mews, Stanningley, for a number of weeks before it was discovered on Friday, March 25.
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Paying tribute to Kirstie, her "heartbroken" family said: ‘Our lives have been left shattered and turned upside down with the news that no parent wants to hear, that our gorgeous daughter is no longer with us.
‘Kirstie Anne Ellis had a beautiful soul, a lover of music, socialising and having fun, her whole family is heartbroken over the loss of such an amazing woman. Kirstie had many friends and family who loved her and she will be missed so dearly."
Police are now desperately trying to piece together exactly what happened with cordons still in place in Stanhall Mews, Cumberland Road and Beancroft Road in Castleford.
The force particularly wants to hear from people who visited the Catalina garage in Bradford Road around the time of Kirstie's death.
Detective Chief Inspector Marc Bowes, who is a Senior Investigating Officer at West Yorkshire Police, said: "This is a tragic case and my thoughts are with Kirstie’s family at this time. Our early investigations show that Kirstie’s body had been in the property a number of weeks.
"A post mortem examination will be carried out in due course to establish the cause of her death and specialist officers are offering support to her family.
"We are appealing for information from anyone who may have seen Kirstie or saw anything suspicious around Stanhall Mews, from mid January 2022 onwards, no matter how small they feel it might be, to come forward and help us with our enquiry. Piecing together the movements of Kirsty will greatly assist our investigation.
"We are particularly keen to hear from people who visited the Catalina garage on Bradford Road around this time and might have also seen or heard something that could help us. A scene remains in place at the property and also at Cumberland Road and Beancroft Road in Castleford. Our Neighbourhood officers are conducting additional patrols to provide reassurance to the local community."
Kirstie's family added: "We would echo the Police’s appeal and ask that if anyone has any information no matter how small to come forward and help the investigation. We would like to thank the community and the media for their support during this difficult time."
Anyone with information that is likely to assist the investigation is asked to contact the Homicide and Major Enquiry Team on 101, or by using the LiveChat facility on the West Yorkshire Police website. The log reference is 1025 of March 25.
