Man charged with murder of missing UK girl, 5
2012-10-06 20:05
London - British police investigating the disappearance of a 5-year-old girl in Wales charged a family friend on Saturday with her murder although her body has still not been found.
Mark Bridger, 46, was charged with the abduction and murder of April Jones and with perverting the course of justice, Dyfed Powys police said.
He will appear in court on Monday.
April was last seen getting into a vehicle on Monday evening. She had been playing on her bicycle with a friend near her home in the market town of Machynlleth.
Hundreds of volunteers had turned out to help police search the surrounding countryside.
Her disapperance also triggered the first use of a national alert scheme in Britain for missing children.
Bridger, a former lifeguard, was detained on Wednesday and police took the unusual step of identifying him as they searched for the girl.
Police said on Friday that he had been arrested on suspicion of murder, indicating that they no longer believed she was alive.
