An inquest into the death of a murder victim was held four years after she was blasted with a shotgun by her former lover.

The body of Janice Wood has never been found but her anguished mum asked for the hearing so she could register her daughter's death.

And yesterday she renewed her plea to murderer Michael Sagar to reveal the whereabouts of the body so she could finally rest in peace.

Jealous love-cheat Sagar is serving a life sentence for shooting the 36-year-old Shipley mother-of-two at point-blank range. Her remains have never been found.

Choking back the tears after yesterday's inquest into her daughter's death, Edna Hardy said: "Until we find Janice we are not going to find peace ourselves. I can't see what Sagar has to gain from keeping silent - he's defying the law and causing an awful lot of upset."

Detectives who led the investigation have advised Mrs Hardy not to write to Sagar, but she has made repeated appeals through the media in the hope that he may one day reveal how he disposed of the remains.

Superintendent Tony Whittle, who attended Bradford Coroner's Court to give evidence, said he had not ruled out the possibility of the body being found by a member of the public.

He said there was nothing more police could do in terms of active investigation.

Coroner Roger Whittaker said he hoped granting a death certificate would help the family in their grieving process: "I hope this helps to complete the full circle of events, apart from the finding of Mrs Wood's body. I cannot begin the contemplate the anguish it has caused you all."

The inquest heard how Mrs Wood disappeared without trace on August 22, 1994 after arranging to meet a friend in a Bradford pub. At the time Sagar, of The Drive, Crossflatts, was on bail from an earlier incident in which he'd threatened her with a shotgun. He was arrested two days later.

Superintendent Whittle told the hearing: "An appeal for information was made via the media and, as a result, Sagar's car was spotted at a scrapyard in Thornton. There was a fair amount of blood on the rear seats and carpets."

Forensic scientists were brought in to collect evidence but were unable to confirm that the blood belonged to Mrs Wood.

The inquest heard the breakthrough finally came on September 1, 1994 when Home Office pathologist Professor Michael Green carried out a painstaking examination of the Ford Sierra.

Professor Green told the hearing part of a human liver was found in the car, along with at least four pints of blood.

After further tests, experts said the blood was 20 million times more likely to come from Mrs Wood or a relative than anyone else. And West Yorkshire Police made history by using a DNA from a cervical smear test to identify tissue samples.

After a nine-day trial at Leeds Crown Court, Sagar was finally convicted of murder on November, 24, 1995 and sentenced to life.

Yesterday's inquest was adjourned indefinitely, but Mr Whittaker assured the family that no further legal proceedings would ever take place in respect of Mrs Wood's death.

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