Suspect is held over link to Milly Dowler murder case

A man, from Hounslow, west London, arrested over the possible disposal of a car at the centre of investigations into the murder of Milly Dowler, was released last night on bail.

Officers said the arrest, in Hounslow, west London, at 6.30am yesterday, was "potentially significant".

Last night, the man was released after being questioned by Surrey police on suspicion of helping to dispose of a red Daewoo Nexia which is thought to be linked to Milly's disappearance. The vehicle was seen on CCTV footage taken from the Walton-on-Thames area on the day the 13-year-old went missing.

Milly, whose real name was Amanda, disappeared near Walton-on-Thames railway station in Surrey on 21 March 2002. Her body was found six months later in woodland on Yateley Heath in Hampshire, about 30 miles away.

Police issued a new appeal for information about the Daewoo last week following the conviction of Levi Bellfield, 39, for the murders of two young women in London. He was subsequently named as a suspect in the Dowler case.

Bellfield has been questioned in the past about her murder. His girlfriend, Emma Mills, lived in Walton at the time Milly vanished and police believe he had access to her car – a red Daewoo Nexia. The vehicle has not been seen since Ms Mills reported it stolen from a pub car park in Hounslow several days after Milly was reported missing.

A constant theme of police appeals in recent years has been a call for anyone from breakers' yards who might have information about the disposal of a red car to come forward.

Detectives have released the Daewoo's registration number, N503 GLT, and its chassis number, KLATF68V1SB554108.

Police say they have been investigating almost 200 new leads since Bellfield's conviction. The former wheel-clamper was jailed for life at the Old Bailey for killing Amelie Delagrange, 22, and Marsha McDonnell, 19, and attempting to murder Kate Sheedy, 18.