Police raise fears over woman missing for five days

Police fear a woman missing for five days may have been adbucted.

Claudia Lawrence, aged 35, is believed to have gone missing early last Thursday morning. She is thought to have set out from home in York to walk to the University of York's Goodricke College, where she is a chef. Her shift was due to start at 6am, but she never arrived.

Detective Chief Inspector Lucy Pope said: "It is a possibility that an abduction could have been involved, but I have nothing to suggest what has happened at the moment."

She had to keep an open mind that ciminal activity might be involved but Claudia "may have decided that she's had enough of living round here".

But Ch. Insp. Pope said Claudia had been happy and sociable and that the disappearance was out of character.

Claudia's father, Peter Lawrence, a solicitor from Slingsby, appealed for public help to find her, saying: "It's been a living nightmare not knowing what happened and we are sick with worry".

Police said Claudia had left the house with no purse, credit cards or passport. Officers appealed for public help to find a small, light blue or green Karrimor rucksack that she used to carry her chef's clothes.

Miss Lawrence is white, around 5ft 6in, slim build and has brown hair and brown eyes.