A builder accused of murdering his 15-year-old niece was spotted in a van near the youngster's home on the day she vanished, a court heard.

Jacqueline Fairchild said she saw Stuart Campbell in the blue van in East Tilbury, Essex, about an hour before Danielle Jones was last seen.

Mrs Fairchild told Chelmsford Crown Court that he was in the van for about 20 minutes on a street leading off the road where Danielle had walked towards a bus stop.

She said she did not recognise Mr Campbell when she attended an identification parade at a police station two months later.

Mr Campbell, 44, of Grays, Essex, denies abducting and murdering his niece.

Prosecutors said he was obsessed with Danielle and had a fixation for teenage girls.

Witnesses say she was seen getting into a blue van and arguing with the driver before she vanished.

Danielle Jones went missing at 0800 BST on 18 June last year when she left home to catch a bus to school.

The trial continues.