Missing teenager Gaia Pope was seen on CCTV buying an ice cream from a petrol station looking ashen-faced just an hour before she vanished.Shortly before the images were released by police today, her mother Natasha launched a desperate appeal for her daughter and claimed the 19-year-old could be 'being held against her will in a garage of van'. She was last seen alive on CCTV on November 7 at 3.40pm - when she was spotted sprinting down Morrison Road in Swanage, Dorset, before banging on 71-year-old Rosemary Dinch's front door in Manor Gardens.
Mrs Dinch and her grandson, aspiring actor Nathan Elsey, also 19, were arrested on suspicion of her murder on Monday afternoon but released 24 hours later pending further inquiries. The elderly suspect's son, Paul, 49, was also been quizzed by police officers at the time of Gaia's disappearance.
His father Greg Elsey said Paul offered officers his phone and bank card to prove he was working away in Weymouth when she vanished. Mr Elsey claims he now doesn't know where his son is.
Today police have revealed new images that show her at a petrol station in Valley Road between her hometown Langton Matravers and Swanage where she bought an ice cream at 2.55pm - two miles away from Manor Gardens. She was driven to the petrol station by a member of her family, where she was seen on CCTV looking pale and tired. Her mother, an actress who has starred in The Bill and Inspector Morse, wrote on Facebook today: 'Back of vans, in garages somewhere she could be hidden, against her will. In a house...keep looking, be bold with respect.
'Thank you. Keep senses sharp. HELP US BRING HER BACK! Can't bear it.'
Speaking at his home today, 69-year-old Greg Elsey told MailOnline police had contacted his son Paul, a carpenter, last week and he offered to provide officers with his phone and bank card, showing he was away from home working in Weymouth, Dorset, at the time of Gaia's disappearance.
He said police officers turned up at his home yesterday looking to speak to Paul, who had been staying there, but had left with a friend.
He said: 'Paul went off with one of his mates. I don't know where he is. The police asked where Paul was and I said he was not here.
'They came in and had a look everywhere so they could see Paul was not here.'
Mr Elsey lives with his mother in Manor Gardens, but occasionally stays with his father - who is separated from Rosemary Dinch.
Today, forensic investigators have been spotted removing parts of piping and toilet fixtures from Mrs Dinch's home in Manor Gardens - the last place Gaia was seen before disappearing.Police teams have also been seen wading through a nearby millpond in Swanage looking for clues that could trace her. Dorset Police's senior investigating officer Neil Devoto said today: 'We believe Gaia was wearing the same grey and white woven leggings and white trainers, but was last seen in a red checked shirt with white buttons.
When she disappeared she was not wearing the black jacket pictured, which was recovered at an address in Manor Gardens.
'Our search efforts are continuing and I would again appeal to the public that if they have any information, however small, that could lead us to finding Gaia, please get in touch. 'Finally, I would like to offer my thoughts to Gaia's family and friends in what is an incredibly difficult time for them. It has been over a week since she went missing and we are doing all we can in order to find her.'
An hour after the first message, Gaia's mother posted: 'Deepest gratitude and thanks. Desperation accumulative.
'We all need Gaia back so she can follow through on her life plan.
'Her talents are cross the board. Society stands to gain massively by getting her back.
'Gaia is dynamic, fun, exceptionally intelligent, compassionate and loving. Gaia is special indeed, so we best crack on discover the truth of things so we may bring her home very soon.'
After the elderly grandmother was released by police, her first husband Greg Elsey revealed she is terminally ill and has to carry an oxygen cannister, coming to her defence to say she 'couldn't even murder a chicken'.
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