Rachel Booth death: Family tribute to 'cherished' and 'loving' mum

Rachel Booth's family have remembered the "cherished" and "loving" mum after her body was found this morning.

Ms Booth, 38, was reportedmissing over the weekend, sparking an urgent investigation in and around the market town of Barnton that later brought police to a lake in Oakmere. Investigating officers from Cheshire Constabulary combed a vast area near the Delamere Lake holiday park, with dogs, underwater search teams and Cheshire Search and Rescue all employed in the effort to track her down.

There they recovered a body from the water on Monday which today was confirmed to be the mum-of-three's, with police representatives saying specialist officers were supporting her family in the wake of the distressing news.

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Following her death, Rachel’s family said in a statement that they would "treasure" the mum forever and thanked police who worked to locate her after she went missing.

The statement read: "As a family we would also like to offer our sincere thanks and appreciation to all the services and business that supported Cheshire Police and their officers during the search for Rachel.

"Rachel, who was known to us as Helena, was a cherished member of our family. She was a guiding light whose strengths love, and devotion touched us all. Her kindness was constant and her presence a strength to everyone she knew, a loving mother, wife, daughter and sister who can never be replaced but always present in our hearts.

"Her absence leaves a space, but her smiles are a memory we will treasure for ever."

Cheshire Police confirmed after the body was found that the circumstances of Ms Booth's death are not being treated as suspicious, but investigators are yet to determine what happened in the run up to the mum's passing.

She was last pictured on CCTV buying milk and wine in the Sandiway garage on the A556 at around 3.50am on Saturday, with police desperately racing to determine her route in the hours after she was reported missing.

Officers were becoming "increasingly concerned" for her safety early on, despite garage staff saying the mum did not appear to be distressed or acting strangely. She was believed to have travelled around eight miles away from the garage after shopping there following a run, and to have taken an eight-mile route to the nearby village of Oakmere.

After her body was discovered in Oakmere lake, and before it was identified by police, a Cheshire Constabulary spokesperson said it was "believed to be that of Rachel".

They said: “Officers have been searching tirelessly for the 38-year-old since her disappearance. Following extensive appeals and searches in the area, officers have now sadly recovered a body in a lake in Oakmere. Whilst formal identification is yet to take place, it is believed to be that of Rachel. Her family have been made aware and are being supported by specialist officers.”