Three more missing prostitutes in UK murders probe

British detectives investigating the murders of five prostitutes in Ipswich, England, said today that, during the night, they had received three more reports of missing prostitutes.

But Detective Chief Superintendent Stewart Gull, who is heading the investigation, said all three had been traced and were safe and well.

“The response from the public to our appeals for information has been massive,” said Mr Gull.

“Our task now is to sift through this vast volume of information to prioritise our inquiries.”

Specialists were today searching an area near Levington, Suffolk, where the bodies of two women were found yesterday.

Police said that they had received more than 2,000 calls from members of the public offering information.

The officer heading the inquiry said the response had been “massive”.

The women were the fourth and fifth found dead near Ipswich in a 10-day period.

Police believe they are missing Ipswich prostitutes Paula Clennell, 24, and Annette Nicholls, 29.

The bodies of prostitutes Gemma Adams, 25, Tania Nicol, 19, and Anneli Alderton, 24, were found in other nearby villages.

Police said they were treating the deaths of Miss Adams, Miss Nicol and Miss Alderton as murders, and have yet to complete their examinations of the bodies of the women found yesterday.

“The bodies of the two women found yesterday evening remain at the scene, which is cordoned off,” added Mr Gull.

“They were found naked, approximately 150 metres apart, on rough ground near the village of Levington.

“They are likely to remain at this location, protected from the elements to preserve evidence, for some time.”

Mr Gull said the News of the World newspaper had offered a £250,000 reward - thought to be the largest in history.

“We are getting good support from the public, media and colleagues in other forces,” he said.

“An example of this is a £250,000 reward, apparently the largest ever, which has been put up by the News of the World newspaper.”

Mr Gull said: "However, it is vitally important that people continue to ring in if they have information.

“In each of the three murder inquiries we have a significant gap between when the women were last seen and the discovery of their bodies.

“We need to find out where these women were between these times.”

He went on: “This is a huge inquiry – but the extra help could make a crucial difference.”