Milly Dowler's parents welcome charges against man suspected of mudering theri daughter

Bob and Sally Dowler thanked detectives for their "painstaking work" over the past eight years.

In a statement issued through Surrey Police, they said: "It's very hard to say how we feel after eight long and difficult years.

"We are extremely grateful to Detective Superintendent Maria Woodall and her investigating team for their painstaking work and support to us

over the years.

"We are pleased that Levi Bellfield has been charged with abduction and murder and hope this will go some way towards providing justice for our darling Milly."

Earlier today, prosecutors announced that the former doorman and wheelclamper will go on trial accused of kidnapping and murdering 13-year-old Milly.

Bellfield, 41, will also be charged with attempting to kidnap Rachel Cowles in Shepperton, Surrey, the day before Milly disappeared.

Speaking in Guildford, Surrey, solicitor Nigel Pilkington said a summons has been obtained from Staines Magistrates' Court and will soon be served on Bellfield.

He said: "During my review of the file, I asked the police to conduct further investigations in relation to specific matters, which I considered would have an important bearing on my decision in this complex case.

"Those investigations were completed in February of this year.

"After carefully reviewing all the evidence in this case, I have now reached the decision that there is sufficient evidence and that it is in the public interest to charge Levi Bellfield with three offences."

Mr Pilkington added that Milly's family were informed of the decision shortly before the public statement and he was meeting them today.

Detective Superintendent Maria Woodall, who led the Surrey Police inquiry, welcomed the decision.

She said: "The investigation into the abduction and murder of Milly Dowler has been long and complex, spanning the last eight years.

"We welcome the decision of the Crown Prosecution Service today. Milly's family have been kept fully informed of all the developments.

"Our thoughts remain with Milly's family. We ask the media to respect their privacy as this continues to be an extremely difficult and traumatic time for them."

The murder of Amanda Dowler, known to her family as Milly, is one of Britain's best-known unsolved crimes.

She vanished while walking home from school in Walton-on-Thames, Surrey, on March 21 2002.

Six months later her skeletal remains were found 30 miles away by mushroom pickers in Yateley Heath, Hampshire.

Bellfield was first interviewed over Milly's death several years ago after he was held by the Metropolitan Police.

Officials at the CPS complex casework unit began considering a huge dossier of police evidence last September.

The five files of material, drawn together by Surrey Police's Operation Ruby team, include new evidence against Bellfield obtained in December 2008.

Officers believe they have compelling circumstantial evidence which links him to the crime.

Police continue to search for a red Daewoo Nexia car caught on CCTV which they believe was used to transport Milly's body.

They searched a lake near Heathrow Airport and questioned scrap dealer Nirmal Gharu last year.

Bellfield has admitted in a newspaper interview to being behind the wheel of the vehicle, owned by his then girlfriend, Emma Mills.

He was living with her a short distance away from where Milly was last seen outside the railway station.

Police previously revealed that a man matching Bellfield's description and driving a red Daewoo Nexia approached a 12-year-old girl the previous day.

The incident took place in Shepperton, only a few miles from where Milly disappeared, and the suspect offered the girl a lift home.

This event is understood to be what lies behind the first charge, an allegation that Bellfield attempted to kidnap Miss Cowles.

Speaking at her family home in Shepperton, Miss Cowles, a student at Southampton University, said she did not wish to comment.

Her father, John, said they had not been told of the decision by the CPS to charge Bellfield.