Amsterdam ‘sighting’ of missing Claudia

Details of the possible sighting have been passed to North Yorkshire Police after a member of the public contacted a website, findclaudia.co.uk, and claimed he had seen a woman bearing a “striking resemblance” to the missing York University chef.

It is the first time the Netherlands have emerged as a potential location for the missing woman, although North Yorkshire Police officers have already focused inquiries abroad. The investigation has stretched as far afield as Cyprus, where Miss Lawrence used to regularly go on holiday, as well as Ireland as officers interviewed former lovers and friends.

A police spokeswoman said: “Although this latest sighting of Claudia is yet to be verified, it shows that Claudia is still in the forefront of people’s minds. However, we wish to stress that anyone with any information about Claudia should always notify the police.”

The informant, a former private detective, has expressed his desire to help the police with their latest inquiries, according to Martin Dales, a friend and spokesman of Miss Lawrence’s father, Peter.

Mr Dales added: “We don’t know if this is a sighting of Claudia or not but we trust that it will be fully checked out.”

Miss Lawrence was 35 when she was last seen near her York home in March 2009. The missing person inquiry was upgraded to a murder investigation the following month. Anyone with information is asked to contact police on 101.