Dogs used in police search for missing Brighton 96-year-old Nellie (From The Argus)

Dogs used in police search for missing Brighton 96-year-old Nellie

12:38pm Tuesday 1st May 2012 in Video News By Emily Walker, Chief Reporter

WITH VIDEO: Specialist police officers and trained dogs are searching the Whitehawk area in a bid to find missing Brighton pensioner Nellie Herriott.

More than 40 people are currently taking part in a search to try and find Nellie, who was last seen getting off a bus in Whitehawk Road last Monday afternoon.

Specialist police search teams and lowland rescue experts with dogs are currently searching areas around the Whitehawk Estate.

Dozens more Neighbourhood Watch and search volunteers are looking in gardens, sheds and bin stores in the residential areas nearest to where she was last seen.

Brighton police spent this morning scouring CCTV footage in a bid to trace the vulnerable 96-year-old's last steps.

And Brighton residents are being urged to check their sheds and gardens in search for missing pensioner Nellie Herriott.

Detective Sergeant Duncan Elliott from Brighton and Hove CID said: "There has been 35 reported sightings of Nellie since Tuesday 24 April which we are investigating.

"Due to the length of time that has now passed, we are extremely concerned for her welfare and hope that today's search will find her safe and well.

"These search teams are specially trained and I would appeal to the general public to please not try and join the police search teams but instead to check their gardens and out buildings."

The search for Nellie has captured the imagination of an army of tweeters, who are using the hashtag #findnellie.

Lord Sugar, Sarah Brown, Angela Griffin and Sue Perkins have retweeted the appeal.

Police have also released CCTV footage of Nellie getting on the 1A bus and at the BHS cafe in Churchill Square, where she was a regular.