Witness 'saw missing girls larking about'

Two girls matching the descriptions of missing 10-year-olds Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman were seen safe and well 12 hours after they disappeared, police said today.

They were seen by a woman walking along the A10 in the Little Thetford area of Cambridgeshire at about 6.45am yesterday, Detective Superintendent David Hankins told reporters at a news conference.

Holly and Jessica went missing from their homes in Soham, a few miles from Little Thetford, at about 6.30pm on Sunday.

"We are particularly reassured as both seemed happy and were described to us by the lady as larking about," Mr Hankins said.

Holly's father Kevin Wells, 38, fought back tears as he described the search.

"We have had to experience friends and family searching ditches and rivers looking for shallow graves for our children. It doesn't get any more difficult than that," he said.

The area where the sighting was made is about 10 miles by road south west of Soham on the Ely to Cambridge road.

The witness saw the girls when she drew back her curtains.

Holly and Jessica were both wearing red Manchester United shirts with number seven on the back, as worn by England captain David Beckham.

Mr Hankins said the possible sighting was reassuring, but he added: "Unfortunately we have had no information since then."

He renewed appeals to the public to come forward with any information.

"Did you see them? Please, please call the hotline immediately if you did. We need your help."

The hotline number is 01480 422982.

A force spokesman said earlier that Mr Beckham had indicated he would be willing to take part in appeals for information.

"We have been in touch with David Beckham's representatives and we are considering asking him to make an appeal but no decision has yet been made by us on that. He has indicated that he would be willing," he added.

Police search teams were scouring verges along the sides of the A10 from early today. Officers were searching fields and hedgerows around Soham in an effort to unearth clues.

Police were also examining two computers, one seized from each of the girls houses.

It is known the girls use computers and they are thought to have been playing on Holly's computer shortly before they disappeared.

Police are trying to establish whether they could have been going to meet someone they had contacted through e-mail.

"We have seized the two computers and we are examining them," said the spokesman.

"But nothing sinister should be read into that.

"The girls did use e-mail and it would be wrong of us not to investigate every possible line of inquiry."

Police said they were also checking records relating to Jessica's mobile phone, which she had on her when she vanished.

The spokesman said he was not aware that any calls had been made from the phone.

There was no answer when relatives and police rang the phone late on Sunday, he said.

The signal on the phone was thought to have died at about midnight on Sunday.

Prior to that, telephone company experts were able to track the signal to an area of Cambridgeshire - but it was too wide to be of any significant use to police, the spokesman said.