POLICE IN NORTHERN Ireland are searching land in Tyrone after a local farmer discovered an area of disturbed earth.
The remote piece of farmland is close to where missing teenager Arlene Arkinson was last seen. The 15-year-old girl disappeared in August 1994 after a night out and was last seen in the company of a convicted paedophile.
The PSNI confirmed an area of land in the Castlederg area has been sealed off following a report of an area of disturbed earth.
“Police are requesting that a number of examinations and tests be conducted. These may take some time,” they said.
Detective Chief Superintendent Raymond Murray, head of Serious Crime Branch, said the family of Arlene Arkinson have been “advised of this development purely as a precautionary measure”.
“It would be premature to draw any inference from this initial report or the police response to it at this time,” he said.
The missing girl’s sister Kathleen, told the BBC that news of the search “just came out of the blue”.
“Whether Arlene is here or not, we’re never going to give up fighting for Arlene because we’re not going to get justice,” she said. “But we’re going to get closure.”
“That’s all we want, just to find Arlene and to move on with our lives. It’s been really, really tough.”
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