They were both schoolgirls murdered in woodlands close to their homes more than 60 years ago.

Now detectives are examining any potential links between the child killings of Fawkham Green girl Sheila Martin and another girl, less than a fortnight before.

Eleven-year-old schoolgirl Sheila Martin was raped and strangled with her own hair ribbon in Sun Hill Wood, which overlooked her home at Fairview Cottages, in the north Kent village on July 7, 1946.

Just 10 days earlier - but more than 200 miles away - 12-year-old Muriel Drinkwater was beaten and raped before being shot by an attacker who lay in wait for her as she walked home through woods near Swansea.

Detectives in south Wales have re-opened the investigation into the murder of Muriel after forensic scientists located the schoolgirl's clothing and recovered material from it, which has given them a near-complete DNA profile of her killer.

Now the Wales cold case murder review team has liaised with Kent Police's cold case officers over the deaths of the girls.

A Kent Police spokesman confirmed: "We have sent the original case file, which is the murder investigation paperwork, to Welsh police.

"But we as a force are not reinvestigating the case because we have no evidence to link the two murders. However, if Welsh police think there is a link then we will look into it again."

For the full story see this week's Messenger.

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