Furious mob attacks prison van carrying man accused of murdering nightclubber Sian O'Callaghan

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12 April 2012

A violent mob today attacked the police van carrying taxi driver Christopher Halliwell as he arrived to face a charge of murdering nightclubber Sian O'Callaghan.

A crowd of about 50 gathered outside Swindon magistrates' court and two men had to be restrained by police.

Dozens of uniformed police officers lined the street to hold back the crowd.

Inside the court friends and relatives of the murdered 22-year-old PA shouted death threats at Halliwell, 47, during his brief appearance.

Miss O'Callaghan disappeared in the early hours of Saturday March 19 after a night out with friends. Her body was found close to the Uffington White Horse in Oxfordshire, 15 miles from her home in Swindon.

Officers have removed the remains of a second body found near Eastleach, Gloucestershire. They are believed to be those of a woman aged between 23 and 30 who died between 2003 and 2005.

Halliwell wore a dark suit and a blue and white striped shirt for today's hearing.

He showed no emotion as the murder charge was read out. Magistrates remanded him in custody until Wednesday, when he will appear at Bristol crown court.

As he was taken to the cells, people in the public gallery shouted abuse including "you nonce," "you're sick" and "we're going to kill you".

The crowd outside again screamed abuse and tried to attack the police van, with police officers struggling to hold them back.

Today it emerged that a Vietnamese women vanished from Swindon in June 2005, although police have so far refused to say if she is linked to the case. Hai Nguyen, 20, who disappeared from her home in Hesketh Crescent, had come to England from Vietnam in May 2003.

Detective Superintendent Steve Fulcher, who is leading the investigation, said: "Bones recovered from the site at Eastleach in Gloucestershire are believed to be those of a young woman with an estimated age between 23 and 30.

"It has been indicated to me that this young woman was taken from the Swindon area between 2003 and 2005. The remains will now be the subject of further forensic laboratory tests and a post-mortem examination. The police search at the site is expected to continue for the time being."

Miss O'Callaghan lived in a flat half a mile from the Suju nightclub with her boyfriend Kevin Reape, 25. She had sent him a text message on the night she disappeared, saying: "Where are you? x."

Hundreds of members of the public took part in a huge search for Sian after her disappearance. Police are still hunting for her mobile phone.

On Saturday up to 10,000 people attended a vigil at Swindon's polo ground, where Chinese lanterns and balloons with messages of condolence were sent flying into the night sky.

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