A HAMPSHIRE man has been arrested in Swanage following the murders of a 49-year-old disabled woman and her carer in Southampton.

David Tiley, 47, was picked up by Dorset police officers near the Mowlem Theatre on the town's seafront just before 8am on Saturday. He was taken by officers to a police station in Hampshire for questioning.

A manhunt was launched after the discovery of the bodies of Sue Hale and carer mother-of-two, Sarah Merritt, at a flat in the Townhill Park area of Southampton on Thursday night.

Miss Hale, who had five grown-up sons, had cerebellar ataxia, a progressive disorder affecting the nervous system. Despite her illness, she worked part-time in a Scope charity shop.

Mrs Merritt was one of her three regular carers and had become Miss Hale's friend. Her husband reported her missing on Thursday evening after she failed to keep afternoon appointments and did not return home.

He drove to Miss Hale's home in Meggeson Avenue and found his wife's car parked outside. Police broke into the ground floor flat and found Mrs Merritt's body in the hall and Miss Hale's in the bedroom.

Police said that post-mortems carried out on the two women showed that both died of stab wounds.

Sarah Merritt's husband Peter, 41, said in a statement issued through police: "Sarah was a kind and loving person whose loss has devastated our whole family.

"She was proud to be a carer and happy to provide comfort and support for those she cared for. She was a loving mother to our two children and always tried to do the best for her family.

"As well as my wife she was my best friend."

The family of Sue Hale said in a statement: "We remember Sue as a happy outgoing and bubbly person who was loved dearly and will be missed greatly.

"Despite the challenges that her disability posed she always faced them with humour and dignity.

"We are finding it very difficult to come to terms with her death and cannot understand why this has happened to such a vulnerable loving person."