International manhunt after murder of girl, 10

An international manhunt has been launched for three adults suspected of being involved in the murder of a 10-year-old girl at her home.

Detectives believe they fled the UK on Wednesday evening – hours before officers made the grim discovery of the dead child at the £550,000 semi-detached house near Woking, Surrey.

Police revealed a 999 call in the early hours of Thursday and raced to the house in the village of Horsell to discover the girl’s corpse.

A post-mortem examination is due to be carried out over the weekend to try and establish both the cause and time of death.

Neighbours say a family of Pakistani origin with six “very young” children moved into the house – a former charity care home - in April.

The children’s father, understood to be a taxi driver, had been doing renovations to the property including laying a new drive.

Detective Chief Inspector Debbie White said: “Our investigation into this tragic incident has continued at pace with a number of enquiries underway.

“We have identified three people we would like to speak to in connection with our investigation and from our enquiries, we believe that they left the country on Wednesday, 9 August. We are working with our partners, including international authorities, to locate them.”

Residents say they have been gripped by “shock and fear” over the girl’s death.

One mother, who wished not to be named, said she was “traumatised” by the news, adding that her children were “terrified”.

She said: “It’s just a shock. My 16-year-old daughter was very upset thinking about that little girl.”

Neighbour Amjad Ali, 47, said he “couldn’t believe something like this happened outside my house.”

He added: “They are a Pakistani family that moved in about five months ago. I only know them to say “Hello” and that’s about it. The kids sometimes play together but we don’t really mix that much.

“This is such a nice area with friendly people and two good schools nearby.”

Another resident aged in his 50s, who has lived in the area for 10 years, said: “I’m surprised that anything like this could happen here such a quiet area.

“There are normally two cars on the drive but yesterday there were no cars and the cordon was going all around the road, with two police cars. They had just redone the drive I think a taxi driver lived there, he drove a BMW.”

Another added: “We don’t know the family they moved into the house in April and were having work done. The house used to belong to Mind charity as a care home.”

Surrey Police revealed officers were called to the address at around 2.50am on Thursday having received a call expressing “concern” for the girl’s safety.

They said the child’s “loved ones” have been informed and are being supported by specially trained officers, Surrey Police said.

Det Ch Insp White, added: “This is a devastating incident, and our officers are working hard to build a picture of what happened.

“We have no reason to believe there is any risk to the public.”