Murder probe after boy, 16, dies

Det Ch Insp Ashley Howard appealed to anyone with information to come forward

Murder detectives have cordoned off an area of woodland beside a playground following the death of a 16-year-old boy.

Essex Police said officers were called to Waterson Vale in Chelmsford at about 23:30 GMT on Sunday to reports of a boy with serious injuries.

The teenager died in hospital.

The force said an 18-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of murder and was in custody.

Police cordoned off an area of woodland beside the play area in Waterson Vale

Det Ch Insp Ashley Howard, from the Kent and Essex Serious Crime Directorate, said: "This is a tragic incident where a 16-year-old child has lost his life.

"We have a team of officers working solidly to determine what has happened here and get justice for his family."

Detectives sealed off an area of woodland beside the play area and appealed for anyone with information to come forward.

Bernadette Godson said anti-social behaviour had been an issue at the park since the pandemic

Khalida Band, who lives on the road, told BBC Essex she watched some of the emergency service response from her window after she heard "lots of noise".

"They brought that boy on to a trolley and put him in the ambulance - it was a terrible night," she said.

"It's a very nice place, very nice neighbourhood, very nice people around; but unfortunately now we are a bit worried."

Essex Police said it was an "isolated" incident and that the suspect was arrested within two hours of it being reported.

'Drug-selling'

Bernadette Godson, 56, who also lives nearby, said she heard "raised voices" at about 23:00.

She said incidents of anti-social behaviour, which included young people pulling branches off trees in the woodland and lighting fires, had increased since the pandemic.

"I'm upset," she said.

"It's something that could have been prevented if they'd taken this constant youth behaviour up here, with the drug-selling and stuff like that, seriously.

"We probably wouldn't be in a situation where somebody lost their life last night."

Resident Khalida Band said she saw a boy being carried into an ambulance at the scene

At the scene

By Richard Smith, BBC Essex

Waterson Vale is a residential area about a mile from Chelmsford city centre.

Some of the houses overlook a public green space, surrounded by trees and the Chislett Row children’s play area.

This morning a police cordon surrounds a small area of woodland, including a gap in the bushes which is one route onto the green.

Some local residents say they have complained of persistent anti-social behaviour in the area. 

Waterson Vale is a residential area close to the centre of Chelmsford