DETECTIVES trying to solve the murder of Heather Barnett say they are working tirelessly to find her killer.

Her two children, Terry, then 14, and Caitlin, then 11, discovered her body in their Capstone Road home in Charminster, Bournemouth.

Heather, 48, had been hit on the head with a hammer-like object and stabbed several times. Her breasts were cut off and placed next to her body and cut strands of someone else’s hair placed in her right hand.

Now, on the seventh anniversary of her death, Dorset Police are renewing their appeal for people to come forward with any information they have about Heather’s murder.

They are particularly keen to identify a man pictured on CCTV in Charminster Road close to its junction with Capstone Road, on the day of Heather’s murder, Tuesday November 12, 2002.

Det Insp Jez Noyce said: “We’re committed to bringing Heather’s killer to justice. A number of officers are working on the case and we’re following several lines of inquiry.”

Last month detectives visited Italy to interview and take DNA samples from the hair of 15 women who reported having hair cut off in unusual or suspicious circumstances. Detectives are still awaiting the results. Samples will be compared to the hair found in Heather’s hands. One match could lead detectives straight to her killer.

It was not the first time officers travelled to Italy as part of the inquiry. They visited Potenza, where cases of haircutting were reported. The case has been linked to that of Elisa Claps, a 16-year-old who went missing from Potenza in 1993. She has never been found.

Anyone with information should call Dorset Police on 01202 222222 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555111.