MYSTERY surrounds the death of an 81-year-old woman who was found collapsed on the side of the busy A420 near Faringdon.

Police have launched an investigation and appealed for witnesses in an effort to find out how she died.

The pensioner was taken to the John Radcliffe Hospital, in Oxford, after she was found on a grass verge alongside the A420 at Buckland on Tuesday, but later died .

Earlier the woman, who is believed to be from the Faringdon area, was seen walking from the BP service station towards Buckland crossroads at about 4.05pm.

Officers are examining a number of lines of inquiry and said they did not yet know if she was hit by a vehicle, suffered a fall or became ill at the roadside.

A post-mortem examination was being carried out last night to try to establish the cause of death, with the results expected today. However, police appealed for witnesses in the hope it could help them piece together her final moments.

They would also like to speak to anyone travelling towards Swindon in a grey-coloured hatchback around that time on Tuesday night, as they believe they could hold vital information about her death.

The woman’s identity had not been confirmed at the time the Oxford Mail went to press.

Any witnesses or anyone with information should call Pc Ed Turner on 08458 505505 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555111.