A 37-year-old man being questioned by detectives over the murder of Melanie Hall has been officially eliminated as a murder suspect.

A spokesman for Avon and Somerset Police said: "We have interviewed this man in Manchester in connection to the murder of Melanie Hall and he has now been formally eliminated from our enquiries."

The man had walked into Cheadle Heath police station in Stockport at 2.45am yesterday. He later underwent a mental health assessment.

The remains of Miss Hall, 25, were found by a slipway at junction 14 of the M5 by a maintenance worker on Monday, 13 years after she went missing from Cadillacs nightclub in Bath.

Her parents Steve and Pat Hall, of Leigh Grove, Bradford Leigh, held an emotional press conference yesterday pleading for her murderer to come forward.

Miss Hall's boyfriend at the time of her disappearance, Dr Philip Kurlbaum, has released a statement following the discovery of her body.

The 46-year-old GP, who now lives in Cheltenham with his wife and two children, was questioned by detectives at the time, but was eliminated as a suspect.

Dr Kurlbaum gave a short statement in reaction to the discovery of Melanie’s body.

He said: “I am very sad for the family.

“It must have been a very difficult time for them. It has been a long time, 13 years.”

Dr Kurlbaum, who in 1996 was a surgeon at the Royal United Hospital in Bath, where Miss Hall also worked, was out with her on the night she vanished.

He told BBC's Crimewatch in November 1996 that he had left her in the club after seeing her dancing 'provocatively' with another man, which left him feeling 'upset'.