French investigators said today that they had arrested a second man in connection with the mysterious disappearance of a nine-year-old girl during a wedding in the Alps, as the search for her entered a sixth day.
Maelys de Araujo was last seen in the early hours of Sunday at the community hall in the village of Pont-de- Beauvoisin, about 50 kilometres north of Grenoble, where the wedding was held.
Scores of police, search and rescue teams, divers and cavers have spent the week trawling through the heavily wooded area for signs of her.
Investigators suspect that the little girl with dark brown hair and eyes, who was attending the wedding with her parents, was kidnapped.
A 34-year-old man who was in the area on the night of her disappearance was arrested on Friday over "contradictions" in his statement to police, state prosecutor Dietlind Baudoin said.
The man is a friend of the 34-year-old wedding guest arrested on Thursday, also over inconsistencies in his story.
Baudoin said the man taken into custody on Thursday was absent from the wedding during a period that could correspond with Maelys's disappearance.
A source close to the investigation said the police were looking into a mobile phone that he concealed from the authorities.
The police will compare his account of events with that of his friend, Baudoin said in a statement.
Police have interviewed about 250 people since Sunday, including most of the 180 guests at the wedding, as well as several others who attended parties held the same night at a nearby bar and church hall.
While the case is being treated as a kidnapping, Baudoin said Friday that no line of investigation was being ruled out.
Sniffer dogs lost the scent from Maelys's cuddly toy in a car park outside the venue, raising fears she was kidnapped and whisked away by car.
A gendarme squad from the Paris region arrived Wednesday to assist in the search.
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