THIS is the married dad-of-two charged after the torso and body parts of a woman were found in dumped suitcases.
Mahesh Sorathiya, 38, from Wolverhampton, was held by cops after the human remains were found in the Forest of Dean this week.
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Mahesh Sorathiya, 38, from Wolverhampton, appeared in court todayCredit: Midlands Media Agency
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Police raided a property in Birmingham after the discoveryCredit: SnapperSK
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He was charged with assisting an offender last night after cops found a dismembered bodyCredit: Midlands Media Agency
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Teams have been scouring the forest for evidence after the grisly findCredit: � Andrew Lloyd
Gareeca Conita Gordon, 27, from Birmingham, has been charged with murder, while Sorithaya has been charged with assisting an offender.
Both appeared before Cheltenham Magistrates' Court via video link today.
Gordon has been in court this morning - she spoke only to confirm her name, address, date of birth and Jamaican nationality, before Sorathiya appeared this afternoon.
The defendants sat behind a table at the Gloucestershire Police custody suite at Compass House for the videolink hearing.
District Judge Joti Bopa-Rai remanded both custody and ordered her to appear before Gloucester Crown Court on May 19.
The body parts were found near a quarry, near Coleford in the Forest of Dean, on Tuesday night.
Police were alerted after a member of the public reported suspicions about a vehicle due to its erratic driving.
The victim, thought to be a woman from the Lozells area of Birmingham, has not been named pending DNA results.
PAIR CHARGED
Neighbours in Wolverhampton today told of their shock as police descended on Sorathiya’s five-bed home in Denmore Gardens, a quiet residential cul-de-sec.
The tradesman moved to the home three years ago from Slough, Berkshire, with his wife, Redha. The Indian couple are said to have two teenage children.
Neighbour Tesman Raju, 74, said: “It’s so shocking. They are a lovely family - I never had a bad word to say about them.
“I saw them all just the other week cleaning their car on the driveway. There didn’t seem to be a problem.
“I considered them to be friends. When their father died, they knocked on my door and I went to their funeral. We got on well with them.
“The son is a nice guy. He didn’t have a bad word to say about anyone. All the family is nice to talk to.
“It’s such a shock to see the police here.”
A Mercedes remained parked in the drive of the house but there was no sign of the family’s white Range Rover, bought as a Valentine’s Day present for Redha.
Another neighbour, who asked not to be named, said: “They are a well off family.
"It’s a nice house to live in and there’s usually a white Range Rover outside. There have been detectives going in and out all day.
"Police officers have been knocking on doors asking questions but they’re not telling us much.”
The property in Birmingham – the suspected murder scene - was described as being 'like an abattoir'.
A source close to the investigation told The Sun: “It was like a bloodbath."
Sorithiya and Gordon were charged by Gloucestershire Police last night.
A spokesman said: “A woman has been charged with murder in connection with the discovery of human remains in the Forest of Dean on the evening of Tuesday 12 May.
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“Gareeca Conita Gordon, 27, from Birmingham, has been charged with the murder of a woman on or before 12 May 2020.
“Mahesh Sorathiya, 38, from Wolverhampton, has been charged with assisting an offender on or before 12 May 2020.
“The pair have been refused bail and are due to appear before magistrates in Cheltenham via video link.
“Police are awaiting results of DNA tests to establish the identity of the victim.”
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Police have been investigating in the forest after making the shocking findCredit: � Andrew Lloyd
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Cops investigated a home in Birmingham amid the probeCredit: SnapperSK
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Officers have been carrying out door-to-door inquiriesCredit: SnapperSK
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Police raided the home after the grisly discoveryCredit: @SnapperSK
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Arrests have been made as police search the forest for more cluesCredit: � Andrew Lloyd
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A detective can be seen scouring the forest after the arrests were madeCredit: � Andrew Lloyd
Education Secretary Gavin Williamson has said "we owe it to the children" to get pupils back in school, as he reassured parents it would be safe.
Mr Williamson said he knew some parents were "very anxious" about reopening schools, but said it would be a "cautious, phased return".
It follows a row over the government's plan to begin a phased reopening of schools in England from 1 June.
Teachers' unions have said the date is too soon to be safe.
Speaking at the government's daily briefing on Saturday, Mr Williamson said: "There are some who would like to delay the wider opening of schools but there is a consequence to this.
"The longer that schools are closed the more children miss out. Teachers know this. Teachers know that there are children out there that have not spoken or played with another child of their own age for two months.
"They know there are children from difficult or very unhappy homes for whom school is the happiest moment in their week and it's also the safest place for them to be."
Schools in England closed for most pupils on 20 March, staying open only for the children of key workers and vulnerable children.
The government has planned a phased reopening of primary schools, for children in nursery and pre-school, Reception and Years 1 and 6 at primary school from after half term on 1 June. At secondary school and college, Years 10 and 12 would return first.
But teaching unions have said plans to reopen primary schools do not have adequate safety measures and need to be halted.
Mr Williamson said the government's approach was based on the "best scientific advice with children at the very heart of everything we do".
"We have been quite clear all along that we'd only start inviting more children when our five key tests have been met," he said. "That position has not changed nor will it."
He said school staff could already be tested for the virus and, from 1 June, children and their families would also be able to get tests if they developed symptoms.
"Together these measures will create an inherently safer system where the risk of transmission is substantially reduced for children, their teachers and also their families," he said.
Mr Williamson said students in years 10 and 12 who were studying for their GCSEs and A-levels "stand to lose more by staying away from school".
He also praised teachers for "going above and beyond the call of duty" for continuing to teach children of key workers, as well as helping children learn at home.
On Saturday, the children's commissioner for England, Anne Longfield, said the government and unions should "stop squabbling and agree a plan" to reopen schools safely.
She said schools should open "as quickly as possible", and called for stronger safety measures to be introduced, such as regular testing for pupils and teachers.
The government has already issued guidance for schools, saying they should:
Reduce class sizes and keep children in small groups without mixing with others
Stagger break and lunch times, and school arrival and departure times
Clean more frequently, and reduce the use of shared items and outdoor space
At least 34,466 people have now died in the UK after contracting the respiratory disease (Picture: Getty)
Another 468 people have died from coronavirus in the UK, taking the death toll to 34,466, the Department of Health has confirmed.
The latest figures from the Government includes deaths in care homes and the wider community. They also include the 244 in UK hospitals reported earlier. NHS England announced 181 deaths, while 41 were recorded in Scottish hospitals, 18 were recorded in Wales and four were reported in Northern Ireland.
Today’s figures come amid a growing row between ministers and teaching unions about when schools should reopen to pupils. Unions oppose the plans, saying they puts teachers, students and their families at risk of catching the virus.
Elsewhere, NHS boss Sir Simon Stevens revealed coronavirus hospital admissions had halved in England since the peak of the pandemic and Prime Minister Boris Johnson ruled out a return to austerity in order to settle the spiralling costs of the crisis.
Pressure on teaching unions has increased after the Children’s Commissioner for England called on the two sides to ‘stop squabbling’ and agree on a plan for a phased re-opening of primary schools from June 1.
Anne Longfield said she was in ‘despair’ at the increasingly entrenched positions being taken by the two sides, in which she said the interests of children were being ignored.
Union bosses held talks on Friday with Government scientific advisers amid concerns the PM was moving too quickly to ease the lockdown restrictions in England. But Patrick Roach, general secretary of the NASUWT union, said members had been left with ‘more questions than answers’.
He said teachers needed ‘unequivocal guidance’ from the Government that there would be ‘strong controls’ in place which would satisfy both teachers and parents that it was safe to return.
Cyclists ride along The Mall near Buckingham Palace following an easing of lockdown rules in England (Picture: AFP via Getty Images)
Primary schools remain closed while ministers and teaching unions discuss plans to reopen on June 1 (Picture: Geoffrey Swaine/Rex)
Mr Johnson last night told MPs he would take ‘grandmother’s footsteps’ towards lifting lockdown restrictions.
He also denied reports the Government will be freezing public sector workers’ pay as part of a string of measures to foot the coronavirus bill.
Writing in the Daily Mail on Saturday, NHS chief executive Sir Simon Stevens said that staff are treating around 9,000 patients a day as opposed to 19,000 a few weeks ago, while admissions have been falling by 2,000 each week.
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Although the health service had risen to the challenge during the crisis, he warned: ‘We are not out of the woods yet and have a difficult path ahead. Continued vigilance will be vital.’
The Government said the virus’s R number – which is the average number of people that will contract coronavirus from an infected person – has crept up to between 0.7 and 1.0.
DOCTORS say it is too risky to reopen schools on June 1 - but the country's biggest primary school chains are backing the government's plans.
There are fears Boris Johnson, who wants primary schools to begin opening their gates in a fortnight, has moved too quickly with measures this week to ease the coronavirus lockdown in England.
A new social distancing classroom in Belgium - Boris Johnson wants some pupils back by June 1Credit: Getty Images - Getty
Unions are opposed to the plan, claiming teachers, pupils and their families will be at risk of catching the deadly virus.
They were backed yesterday by the doctors' union, the British Medical Association, who said unions were "absolutely right" to urge caution and prioritise testing before reopening schools on June 1.
But today Anne Longefield, the Children's Commissioner for England, told Sky: "We cannot afford to wait for a vaccine, which may never arrive, before children are back in school."
BMA council's chair, Chaand Nagpaul, the BMA council's chair, said: "We cannot risk a second spike or take actions which would increase the spread of this virus, particularly as we see sustained rates of infection across the UK."
In other developments:
Britain's death toll rose by 384 to 33,998
Latest data suggested R in England was between 0.7 and 1.0 - compared to a previous estimate of 0.5 to 0.9.
Boris Johnson told Conservative MPs Britain would not pay for the cost of the crisis by going back to austerity, but he refused to rule out tax rises
Following a meeting with government scientific advisers yesterday, union representatives said they had been left with more questions than answers, with one union leader describing the scientific evidence as "flimsy at best".
Meanwhile Liverpool became the first local authority to rule out reopening its school until at least June 15, in a major blow to the government.
Hartlepool in County Durham, later joined Liverpool in saying it would ignore the plan.
Steve Chalke, founder of the Oasis trust which has 35 primary schools, claimed opposition to reopening is "rather middle class" and failed to recognise the damage being down to disadvantaged children from missing lessons.
Sir Steve Lancashire, chief executive of Reach 2, the country's biggest primary multi-academy trust with 50 schools, said: "Our intention is to open all of our schools for the priority year groups, and will do so as long as the rigorous risk assessments we carry out for each school gives us the reassurance we need that we can keep our pupils and staff as safe as possible."
As the row between ministers and teaching unions intensified, Longfield told them to "stop squabbling and agree a plan" to reopen schools safely.
She said many children were struggling away from the classroom and the lack of education would impact on future life chances.
She said: "All sides need to show a greater will to work together in the interests of children.
"We cannot afford to wait for a vaccine, which may never arrive, before children are back in school.
"It's time to stop squabbling and agree a staggered, safe return that is accompanied by rigorous testing of teachers, children and families."
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Gavin Williamson has reasoned with unions to 'do their duty'Credit: AFP or licensors
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She told the Today programme: "My worry within all that is that the needs of children and the best interests of children are disappearing from view.
"There are really strong reasons why children need to get back into school. It is really imperative to see the can-do willingness to work together that we have seen in other parts of society.
"None of us want to put children, or indeed staff or parents, into any kind of situation that is unsafe. But until we get a vaccine we are going to have to be managing risk."
Christopher King, head of the Independent Association of Prep Schools said he expected all 670 schools to reopen to the priority year groups on June 1.
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At last night's press briefing, Dr Jenny Harries, deputy chief medical officer for England, insisted the risks were low with just two or three out of 1,000 of the population currently thought to be infected.
She said: "There's a lot of anxiety I think around this but people need to think through - in an average infant school with 100 children the likelihood of anybody having this disease is very small and diminishing with time."
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Ministers are planning for children in reception and years one and six to return to their classrooms from June 1Credit: AP:Associated Press
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Top government scientist Jenny Harries insist it’s safe for schools to reopen after coronavirus lockdown
A woman has appeared in court charged with murder following the discovery of human remains in two suitcases.
Gareeca Conita Gordon, 27, appeared at Cheltenham Magistrates' Court by videolink, accused of killing a woman between 14 April and 12 May at her home in Birmingham.
Police are awaiting DNA test results to establish the identity of the victim.
Ms Gordon, of Birchfield, Birmingham, was remanded in custody to appear at Gloucester Crown Court on Tuesday.
Mahesh Sorathiya, 38, of Denmore Gardens, Wolverhampton, also appeared before magistrates charged with assisting an offender - namely Gordon - on a date between 25 April and 12 May.
He was remanded in custody to appear at Gloucester Crown Court on Tuesday.
The remains were found close to a quarry near Coleford in the Forest of Dean on Tuesday night.
Gloucestershire Police said a post-mortem examination was found to be inconclusive and further examinations were under way.
A woman has appeared in court charged with murder following the discovery of human remains in two suitcases.
Gareeca Conita Gordon, 27, appeared at Cheltenham Magistrates' Court by videolink, accused of killing a woman between 14 April and 12 May at her home in Birmingham.
Police are awaiting DNA test results to establish the identity of the victim.
Ms Gordon, of Birchfield, Birmingham, was remanded in custody to appear at Gloucester Crown Court on Tuesday.
Mahesh Sorathiya, 38, of Denmore Gardens, Wolverhampton, also appeared before magistrates charged with assisting an offender - namely Gordon - on a date between 25 April and 12 May.
He was remanded in custody to appear at Gloucester Crown Court on Tuesday.
The remains were found close to a quarry near Coleford in the Forest of Dean on Tuesday night.
Gloucestershire Police said a post-mortem examination was found to be inconclusive and further examinations were under way.
