Prison video link for Maxine Carr hearing

A woman accused of attempting to pervert the course of justice following the disappearance of schoolgirls Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman will again appear in court via a live prison video link later this week.

Maxine Carr, 25, of Soham, Cambridgeshire, will appear at a special sitting of Peterborough Crown Court on Friday.

Her first court appearance, before Peterborough magistrates last month, was marred by ugly scenes after a large and hostile crowd gathered outside the building.

To avoid a repeat, special arrangements were made for her to appear via a video link when she made her first appearance in crown court a few weeks ago.

And a spokeswoman for the Lord Chancellor’s department said similar arrangements were being made for Carr’s next appearance on Friday.

Carr, a former teaching assistant in Holly and Jessica’s class at St Andrew’s Primary School, Soham, is currently being held in custody at Holloway Prison, north London, pending trial.

Holly and Jessica, both 10, vanished after being seen walking near their homes in Soham on August 4.

Their bodies were found in a ditch at Lakenheath, Suffolk, on August 17.

Ian Huntley, 28, a former caretaker at Soham Village College, has been accused of their murders.

He is being held under the provisions of the Mental Health Act at Rampton Hospital in Rampton, Nottinghamshire.