Louise was friends with Lucie Blackman

Miss Kerton, a former classmate of Lucie Blackman, the British woman murdered in Japan, was last seen in Germany on 30 July.

That was when she was dropped at Aachen railway station by her fianc�'s mother who, it is understood, moved to Germany following her son's trial.

From Aachen, Miss Kerton was due to travel to Ostend in Belgium before sailing to Dover to meet Peter.

An international search, involving police from Germany, Belgium and Britain, was launched when she failed to arrive.

'Matter of course'

A Kent Police spokesman said: "In the wake of an incident like this, we always look at relatives and friends.

"People would expect us to do that. We are aware of previous histories.

"We will be looking at the immediate circle of family and friends as a matter of course and there is nothing to suggest that it is anything more than that."

Miss Kerton had recently failed her final year nursing exams and was returning from holiday to discuss her future with tutors.

Not guilty plea

Peter had returned two days earlier to work.

Former air stewardess Lucie Blackman, 21, was kidnapped by a client while working as a bar hostess in Japan to fund a round-the-world trip.

She was drugged and raped, before being killed and dismembered in Tokyo last June. Her body was only found in February.

In July, Japanese businessman Joji Obara pleaded not guilty to the rape and manslaughter of Miss Blackman, at a court in Tokyo.