The search for a missing man aged 72has been stepped up.

Police divers and mounted officers were yesterday drafted in to search stretches of countryside on the edges of Abingdon in the continuing hunt for Alexander Russell.

Mr Russell disappeared on January 26.

He spoke to a friend in the Punchbowl pub in the centre of Abingdon and was apparently looking for someone.

He was later seen near the bus stops in the town's High Street at about 10.05pm.

Three sightings of him in Abingdon Road, Drayton, on January 27 were reported to police, but he has not been seen since.

Door-to-door inquiries in the area have so far proved no further clues.

Countryside and streams alongside the Abingdon Road were being searched yesterday in the hope they would provide some clues about Mr Russell's diappearance.

Mr Russell is 6ft tall and balding with grey hair and a very slim build.

Anyone with any information is asked to call Abingdon Police on 01235 556850.