Police trawl missing girl’s laptop in house fire mystery

POLICE were last night examining a missing teenager’s computer as they worked to solve the mystery surrounding her family’s burnt-out country estate.

Kirstie Foster, 15, and her parents Christopher and Jill have not been seen since their home was gutted by a suspected arson attack at around 4.00am on Tuesday.

Police have searched parts of Osbaston House in Maesbrook, near Oswestry, Shropshire, but the family remain unaccounted for amid fears they died in the blaze.

The Fosters went to a friend’s barbecue on Monday before returning to their £1.2 million (€1.5m) home later that evening.

It is believed Kirstie may have been talking online to friends in the hours before the fire, which destroyed a stable block, garage and badly damaged the house.

A spokeswoman for West Mercia Constabulary said police were looking at Kirstie’s computer.

“We are aware that Kirstie had a computer and the use of that forms part of the inquiry,” she said.

Police have refused to comment on reports that bullet cartridges and pools of blood were found in the courtyard.

A man who knew Mr Foster said yesterday he feared his former business associate may have “just flipped”.

Terence Baines, a former director of Mr Foster’s company Ulva Ltd, said: “It’s anyone’s guess but it seems that the people he owed money to are big companies and I can’t see them behind something like this”.

Speaking from his home near Tamworth, Staffordshire, Mr Baines, an accountant, speculated that maybe Mr Foster “just flipped because the pressure of it was too much for him”.

He added: “He was just an ordinary everyday chap, a good businessman.”

Mr Baines, who used to own the company, said he was last in contact with Mr Foster in 2001 and sold his shares in Ulva to Mr Foster “way back”.

Police said yesterday they have begun their search of the house but warned that the process will be lengthy.

Yesterday morning, teams entering the building were forced to withdraw “almost immediately” after debris began to fall.

They left the building for their own safety but were able to re-enter in the afternoon following more work to shore up the structure.

Police are developing profiles for all three family members and 100 officers and support staff are working on the “unusual and complex incident”.

Court documents show that Mr Foster’s company, Ulva Ltd, which had gone into liquidation, faced legal action from one of its suppliers for thousands of pounds, and also owed about £800,000 in tax.