HAMPSHIRE had 20 of 492 cases where body parts were retained by police in case they were needed for investigations.

The national figure was released yesterday by the Association of Chief Police Officers, following a national audit into human tissue samples.

However the Daily Echo revealed in January this year how Hampshire Constabulary had retained 20 such samples - and revealed that some families may never have known.

Specially trained officers were then deployed to tell relatives involved that they still had the remains, which have since been disposed of in line with families' wishes.

The figure was disclosed by police chiefs in the county following their own audit last October. It was reported following the revelation that mum Julie Middleton, 40, was told the brain of her six-week-old son Regan had been discovered in a jar - 13 years after he died from cot death at Southampton General Hospital.

Police in Northern Ireland recorded the highest volume of ''unnecessarily'' stored items, with 71.

The figures relate to “category three” which includes items such as organs and limbs, Hampshire police confirmed.