A young woman who was found dead on a beach in Sussex last year drowned, a post mortem has confirmed.
The body of Blessing Olusegun, 21, was found lying on a beach in Bexhill on September 18, 2020.
Miss Olusegun, from Greenwich, was on a one-week placement working as a live-in carer for patients with dementia at the time.
Sussex Police launched an investigation into the death but it is being treated as unexplained rather than suspicious, our sister site Sussex Live reports.
A post mortem and further forensic tests confirmed Miss Olusegun’s death resulted from drowning.
Sussex Police also said there was no evidence of violence or of internal or external injury but detectives are “keeping an open mind” and continue to examine the circumstances leading to Miss Olusegun’s death.
Officers have asked anyone who saw Miss Olusegun that night, or who has any other information that will help, to get in touch.
A Sussex Police spokesperson said: “Detectives in East Sussex are continuing to investigate the tragic death of a young woman on a beach in Bexhill.
“At 6.20am on September 18, the body of a woman was found lying on the beach at Bexhill near Galley Hill.
“The body was identified that morning as that of Blessing Olusegun, 21, of Middle Park Avenue, London, and her next of kin, her mother, was contacted and informed that afternoon by a visit from the Metropolitan Police at our request.
“Meanwhile police in Sussex began an investigation of the circumstances and the death was treated as unexplained though not suspicious at that stage.
“A post mortem took place on September 24 and further forensic tests were carried out in order for the cause of death to be established.
“Police and the coroner’s officer have kept in touch with Blessing’s mother to ensure she was informed of any significant development.
“The further forensic tests confirmed that Blessing’s death resulted from drowning. There was no evidence of violence or of internal or external injury.”
Detective Inspector Pippa Nicklin said; “The results of the postmortem and further forensic tests have already been supplied to Blessing’s mother and on October 16 we visited her to personally explain and discuss with her the investigation so far.
“This is a very distressing time for her and we are keen to do everything we can so that hopefully she may gain some closure over the death of her much-loved daughter.
“Although there continues to be no evidence of crime at present we have been keeping an open mind and are still carefully and fully examining all the circumstances leading up to Blessing’s death, from her arrival in Bexhill, to her leaving the house where she was working and walking to the beach.
“This work continues, and meanwhile anyone who saw Blessing that night, or who has any other information that will help, can contact us either online or by calling 101 Sussex, quoting Operation Vista.”
