Police trace three youths who saw Wakefield farm death blaze

MURDER squad police investigating a fire at a farm near Wakefield in which a two-year-old girl died said they have traced three youths they want to speak to about the blaze.

The three witnesses were seen in a field overlooking Hessle Farm, Wragby, near Wakefield, West Yorkshire, shortly after the fire, which killed Isobel Dobson last month, broke out.

Isobel’s 37-year-old stepfather was arrested on suspicion of murder and attempted murder after the fire and remains on police bail pending inquiries.

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The two-year-old girl, from Hemsworth, near Pontefract, and her one-year-old half-sister were trapped in a burning van when the fire broke out in an adjacent hay barn.

Her stepfather and the girls’ mother rescued the baby from the vehicle but were beaten back by flames as they tried to save Isobel. Her body was found later that night. The man and his one-year-old daughter received treatment for burns at Pinderfields Hospital in Wakefield.

West Yorkshire Police said the cause of the fire had not yet been established and a joint investigation by police and the fire service was still ongoing.

A force spokeswoman said: “Police appealing for witnesses in relation to the fatal fire at Wragby, in Wakefield, on Friday September 30, in which Isobel Dobson died, have managed to trace three people who they believe may have information.

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“Detective Superintendent Sukhbir Singh, from the forces’s Homicide and Major Enquiry Team, said officers would be speaking to them.

“He continued to appeal for any other witnesses or anyone with information that they feel could assist the investigation to contact the homicide and major inquiry team via 0845 6060606 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.”

An inquest into Isobel’s death was opened and adjourned last week.