Two men seen near Milly site

The police search has resumed in Hampshire

Surrey Police are appealing for witnesses who may have seen two men with a schoolgirl in a field near to where Amanda 'Milly' Dowler's remains were found.

The two men and the schoolgirl - who was in a blazer and grey skirt or dress - were spotted by a man driving past the field at about 1700 BST on 21 March this year.

That sighting was around one hour after 13-year-old Milly went missing 20 miles away in Walton-on-Thames.

One of the men was immediately behind her and the other was about six feet away

Surrey Police

The field was about 300 yards north of where the schoolgirl's remains were found in Yateley Heat Forest, near Fleet, last month.

Police are also appealing for help in tracing four vehicles, including a white box van that was seen in the immediate area at the same time.

Detective Chief Superintendent, Craig Denholm, who is leading the inquiry, said the sighting was a "very significant" development in the investigation.

He told a press conference at Staines police station that the witness told police he saw the two men with a schoolgirl in a field to his left as he drove along Minley Road.

Two men were seen close to where Amanda Dowler's body was found

"He says that the girl was wearing a dark blazer and a grey skirt or dress," the detective said.

"One of the men was immediately behind her and the other was about six feet away."

The witness, who is local to the Yateley area, first drove south along Minley Road on the afternoon of 21 March at about 1645 BST when he saw a dark medium-sized car the size of a Ford Mondeo or Escort which he believed was between eight and 10 years old.

It was parked at an angle to the road at the Minley Farm gateway.

The man also saw a white van further down the road which he described as being larger than a Transit van, possibly a Mercedes box-type van - it was parked at 90 degrees to the road.

'Strange occurrence'

Police say the witness then saw a man walk from the front of the van to the driver's door, which was open.

The man was white, of medium build and in his 20s, his roundish face was clean-shaven and he had short, light-brown hair.

Mr Denholm added that the witness may have remembered because what he saw was "a strange occurrence".

Police are making a fingertip search of the surrounding area, which should take another two or three weeks.

They have discovered the "vast majority" of the teenager's remains, some of which were spread up to 70 metres away from the original scene.

But there is still no sign of her clothes, mobile phone or possessions.

Surrey and Hampshire Police are questioning known sex offenders in the area and speaking again with people known to Amanda.

They are also speaking to regulars at nearby Blackbushe market in the hope some might have witnessed something.