Give back Amanda, sister begs

The Dowler sisters were looking forward to Easter

Amanda Dowler's sister has made an emotional plea to anyone who may have abducted the missing schoolgirl.

Gemma, 16, is too upset to speak publicly about her grief, so she made her appeal in an open letter.

Amanda, known as Milly, vanished 10 days ago as she walked home from the railway station in Walton-on-Thames, Surrey.

Meanwhile, the number of police investigating her disappearance has been boosted by 20 extra officers to cope with the public response.

Milly was going to come shopping with me to choose my prom dress and we had planned a great big Easter party

Gemma Dowler

Amanda and her sister were very close - they shared a bedroom and attended the same school.

Gemma wrote: "The nights are the worst and my imagination runs wild thinking about what has happened to her.

"If someone has taken Milly, please return her safely to us as I am missing her very much and I couldn't wish for a lovelier sister."

Amanda had promised to help her older sister to prepare for a prom at Heathside School, Weybridge, where they are both pupils and their mother Sally is a maths teacher.

Easter party

She wrote: "One week ago I was looking forward to the Easter holidays.

"Milly was going to come shopping with me to choose my prom dress and we had planned a great big Easter party."

Gemma's letter included love hearts to Milly

Mrs Dowler, 43, said the prom was a big event for the two girls, who were sharing in the excitement.

She said: "It was a really big deal and Milly was going to come out with Gemma and myself to choose a beautiful dress for it."

Bob Dowler, 50, also described the close relationship between his two daughters.

He said they had their own bedrooms but decided to share one of them.

"I spoke to Milly about it once when we were chatting in the car together somewhere and she said she was really close to her sister.

"I said: 'That's really nice because often sisters seem to fight'.

Aerial photographs

"I said: 'It's nice you will be able to have that relationship when you're older'."

They loved performing karaoke together on Amanda's machine, he added.

They were preparing for a school singing competition based on the television show Stars in their Eyes.

Amanda: no sign of a struggle

Amanda was planning to perform a song by girl band All Saints.

Superintendent Alan Sharp of Surrey Police said on Sunday the 20 extra police officers would bring the total working on the case to more than 100.

Those drafted in will remain on the investigation at least until the end of the bank holiday weekend.

Mr Sharp said the move was a direct response to the recent appeals for information.

He repeated that police believed Amanda may have gone off with someone she knew because there had been no reports of a struggle in the area where she disappeared.

Searches of the area have been temporarily suspended so aerial photographs can be examined to help narrow the search.