A murder investigation is under way after a woman was found dead following a “horrific” attack and a flat fire in Londonderry.

Firefighters attended the scene on Harvey Street after reports of a fire were received at 4.15am on Saturday.

The woman, who was found in the bedroom of the ground-floor flat, was pronounced dead at the scene.

Police said they are investigating the circumstances around the “heinous and evil” crime and have increased the police presence in the city over the coming days.

The woman is believed to be aged in her 40s to 60s, Detective Chief Inspector Anthony Kelly said.

“At this time, at what are the very early stages of our investigation, we are working to identify the victim who we believe may be aged possibly in her 40s to mid-60s,” he said.

“From our inquiries so far, we can tell you that the victim suffered a horrific attack and sustained multiple injuries.

“We know this brutal murder has caused great concern, understandably, but we can assure you we are working at full pace to establish what happened and catch those responsible for this heinous and evil crime.

“You will see an increase in police presence in the city in the coming hours and days, and I’m grateful to members of the public for their ongoing support.”

He said the preserved scene on Harvey Street remained in place and a post-mortem examination will be carried out to establish the cause of death.

“We have a number of specific appeals to make and I urge anyone with information to contact us, or Crimestoppers, which is anonymous,” he said.

“Were you in the Harvey Street area between 2am and 5am today? Did you notice or hear anything remotely suspicious, or see any unusual activity, including vehicles not normally in the area – or anything out of the ordinary?

“If you have any CCTV, doorbell or dash-cam footage from this timeframe, please contact us. I’m appealing directly to the local community to tell us anything you know. We need to find out who did this.

“Our inquiries are ongoing in relation to a motive and we need the public’s help. Any information, no matter how small it may seem, could be very helpful.”

SDLP MLA for Foyle Mark H Durkan said called the incident “harrowing and heartbreaking”.

“Our thoughts and prayers are with a family waking to the worst possible news this morning,” he said on Facebook.

“Please, please come forward if you have any information at all that might help the police with their investigation.”