Reports that the serial killer Harold Shipman has been cremated have been denied.
Officials confirmed yesterday that his body was still at the Sheffield mortuary to which it was taken after Shipman was found hanged at Wakefield prison on January 13.
National newspapers, including the Guardian, reported that Shipman, who was found guilty of murdering 15 elderly women, had been cremated in Yorkshire last week.
A "low-key ceremony with minimal trappings" was said to have been held in secret, outside normal working hours.
But Linda Dale, manager of the Medico Legal Centre in Sheffield, said: "We were astonished when we saw the stories. We have no idea where they came from."
Ms Dale added that Shipman's body was still at the centre. The family's funeral plans are not known. Shipman's widow Primrose is believed to prefer burial but this seems unlikely because of fears that the grave could be desecrated.
The West Yorkshire coroner, David Hinchliff, has opened and adjourned an inquest which will eventually be resumed before a jury. A spokeswoman for Mr Hinchliff said: "We have issued a cremation order which means the deceased can be cremated."
