THE family of murdered pregnant mum Christine Askey is facing a bleak Christmas in the knowledge that her killer is still at large.

Christine's mum Pauline Coombes is trying to make it as normal as possible for her grandson Cameron - who was in the house when Christine was found strangled in the bath.

It adds to the heartache she felt last week, when Christine would have turned 21.

Residents of the Callon estate say the family is 'shattered' by Christine's murder, who was pregnant with twins.

But despite massive publicity in the media, and a multi-lingual leaflet drop in the area, detectives have still not established a motive for the murder, or why an Asian man regularly visited her house for short periods. Detective Superintendent Paul Buschini, who is leading the murder hunt, said: "The family are coping but it is obviously a very traumatic time, particularly as Christine's killer is still at large."

The investigation is currently concentrating on several strands, including the search for Christine's Asian visitor, who was regularly dropped off at the corner of Nevett Street, where she lived with Cameron.

Det Supt Buschini renewed his appeal for help in piecing together Christine's history. He said: "We have been able to gather information from face to face interviews, but members of the public are not coming forward.

"Someone must know who the Asian man is. He was regularly dropped at the corner of Christine's street in a sporty car, so the driver must know who he is."

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.