Police searching for missing RAF gunner Corrie McKeague are investigating whether the discovery of a mobile phone is linked to his disappearance.

The 23-year-old has not been seen since the early hours of September 24, when he was on a night out in Bury St Edmunds in Suffolk.

A vast police appeal and numerous searches have failed to find any trace of Mr McKeague, who is originally from Dunfermline but was based at nearby RAF Honington.

It emerged on Tuesday that police are trying to assess whether or not the recent discovery of a Nokia mobile phone is linked to his disappearance.

Mr McKeague's mother Nicola Urquhart posted a message on a Facebook appeal page on Tuesday, claiming officers from Suffolk Constabulary were carrying out fresh searches of buildings near the Horseshoes Inn on the outskirts of Bury St Edmunds.

She said: "I would like everyone to know that the police are carrying out a search of the buildings on the other side of the Horseshoe.

"Myself, the boys and our entire families would like to thank you for giving us your voices.

"The police reviewed the information they had and with the intelligence they received they are now searching. Thank you all again."

Ms Urquhart said the family was trying to "stay positive".

Her son's girlfriend April Oliver revealed on Monday she was pregnant.