French manhunt for child kidnapper

A manhunt was underway in France’s cognac country today for a kidnapper and his nine-year-old victim.

He was seen silencing the girl with a hand over her mouth and shoving her into the boot of his stolen car before driving away.

Fanny Lafond was abducted on Tuesday afternoon in Jarnac as she played on her scooter in front of her parents’ home. Two neighbours witnessed the kidnapping.

Police were hunting for a man aged between 25-30. A grey Peugeot 405, stolen three weeks earlier and used by the kidnapper, was found today dumped about three miles from Jarnac.

Police deployed 150 men, a helicopter and specialist investigators in the search.

Jarnac, in the Charente region, is the birthplace of the late French president Francois Mitterand and also the home of Courvoisier brandy.