Tragic Paula told of fears

PROSTITUTE Paula Clennell - whose body was believed to have been found near Levington yesterday - said only days ago that she was prepared to dice with danger by going back on the streets.

The chilling interview was unearthed only hours before police announced that the bodies of two young women had been discovered.

As fears spread that a serial killer was on the loose, she headed back to the town's red light district saying “I need the money”.

The 24-year-old said in a television interview that the killings had made her “a bit wary about getting into cars” but she would probably still do it anyway.

She had spotted there were fewer men and less girls around, probably because of the police presence.

“The girls are probably wary about coming out now,” she said.

Miss Clennell admitted that she had “a couple of nasty experiences”, including being beaten up once.

Hearing what had happened to murdered prostitute Gemma Adams had made her feel “sick”, she said.

As fears mounted for the welfare of Miss Clennell yesterday, her father appealed to his daughter to get in touch.

Brian Clennell, who did not know she was a prostitute, spoke of his fears for her safety in a television interview.

He said: “You do not have anything to worry about. You have a good mother and a loving sister and they just want her back.

“I'm hoping for the best, that she is with friends. If she has done something wrong all she has to do really is to contact her mother or the confidential police line and she will get all the help she wants.”

Mr Clennell, from Berwick, Northumberland, said in another television interview that he hoped she was safe and just “lying low”.

He said: “I was shocked when I found out she was working as a prostitute.

“I haven't seen her for several years, since my divorce. I can only think she has got in with the wrong crowd and that she is lying low after all that has happened.”

Mr Clennell said his daughter was like any other young woman, and described her as a kind-hearted and loving soul.

He said: “I would hear how she was from her sister in Norwich, but I never knew anything about her working as a prostitute. This is all news to me. There is nothing I can do up here and I'm just hoping for the best.”