A MAN arrested on suspicion of perverting the course of justice during the investigation into missing chef Claudia Lawrence has given police new leads.

Detectives said they had released a 47-year-old man from bail conditions following discussions with the Crown Prosecution Service.

The man was arrested on July 23 last year on suspicion of perverting the course of justice as police carried out a detailed search of The Acomb pub, in Kingsway West, York.

About eight police vehicles - including one from Durham Constabulary - descended on the pub for a detailed search of the premises, using sniffer dogs and a jackhammer.

The search was carried out as the focus of the probe into the murder of Miss Lawrence, who was 35 when she disappeared in 2009, appeared to shift to Acomb, west of the city.

Last month, detectives targeted the area near to where Miss Lawrence lived in Heworth Road, York and, after screening CCTV footage of someone lurking in the shadows near her home on the night she disappeared, arrested a man in his fifties over her murder, who was later bailed.

A 59-year-old man, who was arrested last May on suspicion of Miss Larence's murder, has since been released from bail.

A North Yorkshire Police spokesman said the man had provided information which had progressed the investigation into the disappearance of the University of York chef, whose parents lived in Darlington before moving to Malton, where she was brought up.

He added that the man had "clarified certain issues", and that had also been a factor in his bail conditions being removed.

Detective Superintendent Dai Malyn, head of the force's major crime unit said: “Our investigation into the disappearance and suspected murder of Claudia Lawrence continues to focus on key lines of enquiry that the ongoing review is identifying.

“People should also be reminded that any arrest we make must be based on evidence, be that from witnesses, forensic examinations or on the basis of other information we gather.

“I am convinced the breakthrough in the investigation will be from this relentless pursuit for the truth.”

Det Supt Malyn urged people not to identify a man who was arrested over the murder of Miss Lawrence on March 23, as identification is an issue in the case.