Police investigating ‘blood-curdling’ scream reports in search for missing student Libby Squire
Police searching for missing student Libby Squire have said they are following up a number of lines of inquiry, including reports that a neighbour heard a “blood-curdling” scream on the night she disappeared.
The news came on the same day that staff and students at the 21-year-old's university held a vigil in solidarity and support.
Humberside Police have said they have received hundreds of calls since the University of Hull student was reported missing from the city in the early hours of Friday morning and are taking statements from people living in the area she was last seen.
Ms Squire was dropped off in a taxi near her home on Wellesley Avenue at around 11.29pm on Thursday and was seen 10 minutes later on CCTV near a bench on Beverley Road, where a motorist stopped to offer her help.
She is believed to have been in this area until around 12.09am on Friday.
On Tuesday, it was reported that a woman living in a street close to Miss Squire’s home heard a scream which she said “sounded like someone being attacked”.
Humberside Police said they have received hundreds of calls from the public offering information and assistance, and added that house-to-house inquiries are continuing.
As the search entered its fifth day, officers from the police regional marine unit searched a pond at Oak Road Playing Fields, near to Miss Squire’s home.
Four officers waded through the waist-deep water, using sticks to break the ice and search beneath the surface.
On Tuesday evening, around 200 students and staff gathered in the rain at the University of Hull to show solidarity and support for Ms Squire, her family and friends.
Vice-Chancellor Professor Susan Lea thanked the crowd for all their help in searching for Miss Squire.
Student Union president Osaro Otabo told the students that support was available for anyone who needed it.
Ms Squire’s close friends are believed to have left the university temporarily to return home after her disappearance.
Police said they were supporting Ms Squire’s parents, Russell and Lisa Squire, who spoke on Monday of their heartbreak at not knowing where their daughter is.
In an emotional appeal, Mrs Squire called her daughter her “darling pie” and said: “It is breaking my heart not knowing where you are.”
Both parents urged Miss Squire to contact them.
Mrs Squire said: “We just want to know that you are safe. Please get in touch with us any way you can.”
Mr Squire added: “We just want you home.”
The family had previously said that the student’s disappearance is “very out-of-character” and that she is a “very thoughtful and caring young woman who puts others before herself”.
Police revealed on Monday that they had found Miss Squire’s mobile phone at her home but that it had not helped to provide any information about where she went on Thursday night.
They said they had also obtained and viewed hundreds of hours of CCTV footage to try to trace the student’s movements and identify anyone who may be of interest to the investigation.
Police and Miss Squire’s family urged anyone with information to come forward.