Police follow up Sarah leads

Road checks brought up several new lines of inquiry

Detectives hunting the killer of eight-year-old Sarah Payne are following up a number of possible new leads thrown up by their weekend roadblocks.

Sussex police plan to re-interview those motorists who provided them with the most useful information, though they added there were no definite leads.

They stopped 20,000 cars on a stretch of the A29 near where Sarah's body was found last week. She was abducted while playing in fields with her siblings on 1 July.

Officers are keen to stress that the public, hundreds of whom brought flowers to the roadside, could still help.

Sarah was last seen wearing a blue sports dress and black shoes

However, they say a scrap of blue material which was found in the grounds of Bramber Castle, a few miles south-east of Pulborough - where Sarah's body was discovered - did not come from her clothing.

The material had been sent to experts at the Forensic Science Service laboratories in London for examination in the hope of uncovering more clues.

But DNA tests revealed the cloth did not come from the blue sports dress Sarah was wearing when she was abducted.

A part of a shoe found by a member of the public last week has also been ruled out as not belonging to the the eight-year-old.

Sarah was remembered in church services around the country

Memorial service

Sarah's parents, Michael and Sara Payne, said their youngest daughter, six-year-old Charlotte, was missing her sister dreadfully.

Mr Payne said: "All the children are up and down but Charlotte is really, really missing Sarah.

"She misses her so dreadfully. She is carrying pictures around with her and she was saying 'perhaps that body was not Sarah, how big was it?' and we say 'no darling it was Sarah', it tears at your heart."

The Paynes also said they were planning a memorial service for Sarah as a way of saying thank you for all the support they have received from the public since their daughter disappeared. Details of the service have not been confirmed.

Police have also renewed their appeal for information about a white van seen in the area when Sarah went missing.

The murder investigation continues to involve police forces across the UK to look at any possible links between other abductions and similar offences.

Hampshire Police notified the inquiry team following the attempted abduction of a young girl in the county 13 days after Sarah disappeared.

Anyone with any information should contact Sussex police on 0845 607 0999.