A man whose body was found buried in the back garden of a house in Northampton has been named as Nicholas Billingham, as a primary schoolteacher appeared in court charged with his murder.
Fiona Beal, 48, is accused of killing 42-year-old Billingham between 30 October and 10 November last year.
Staff at Eastfield Academy in Northampton, where Beal worked, said it was an “appalling tragedy that will shake our school community”.
In a statement, a school spokesperson said: “We were shocked and saddened to hear that one of our teaching staff has been charged with a very serious offence and is now remanded in custody.
“We are particularly mindful of the impact this news will have on the children, and will be doing everything we can to support both pupils and staff as we work through this difficult time together.
“This is an appalling tragedy that will shake our school community to its roots, and it’s at times like this that we must rally around each other, support each other and be kind to each other.”
Beal was arrested at a hotel in Cumbria, more than 200 miles from her home, shortly after midnight on Wednesday.
Northamptonshire police began conducting an extensive search of her house the same day. Forensic officers and specialist search teams, including a cadaver dog used to locate bodies, were deployed to the address, and the discovery was made on Saturday.
Police said the remains of Billingham would be taken to Leicester for an examination by a Home Office pathologist.
At Northampton magistrates court on Monday, Beal was told she was not entitled to apply for bail and was ordered to appear at the town’s crown court on Tuesday.
On Sunday, DCI Adam Pendlebury, of the major crime team of the east Midlands special operations unit, said: “Regrettably, I can confirm that a body has been found in the rear garden of the address. We believe it to be that of a missing 42-year-old male, but formal identification has yet to take place.
“Police officers have been conducting house-to-house inquiries in the area over the past couple of days. This remains a complex and challenging investigation and we are appealing for anyone with any information to contact Northamptonshire police on 101, quoting incident number 26 of 16 March 2022.”
