Search for missing sisters focuses on icy river

Eliza and Henrietta Huszti were last seen in the early hours of Tuesday

Police are focusing on an icy river in the search for two sisters who are missing in Aberdeen.

Eliza and Henrietta Huszti - who are part of a set of triplets - were last seen in Market Street at Victoria Bridge at about 02:12 on Tuesday.

Officers are continuing to search the River Dee, which they previously said was the focal point of their investigation.

Divers have already searched part of the river near to where the women, who are 32 and originally from Hungary, were last captured on CCTV.

Police carried out fresh river searches on Sunday

On Saturday, the search was extended to include the area towards the Port of Aberdeen's South Harbour and Duthie Park.

Officers are now carrying out fresh searches along the river, which still has floating ice patches on its surface following a week of plunging temperatures.

Relatives have urged people not to spread unfounded rumours about the sisters' disappearance.

Detectives previously said there was nothing to suggest anything suspicious had happened to the women.

Officers made a fresh appeal for information on Saturday.

Ch Insp Darren Bruce said: "Eliza and Henrietta's family are understandably extremely worried about them and we are working tirelessly to find them.

"We are seriously concerned about them and have significant resources dedicated to the inquiry."

The Huszti family said the two sisters had moved from Hungary to Scotland about seven years ago.

Their brother Jozsef told BBC News that Eliza and Henrietta seemed "fine" in the days before they went missing, and that they spoke to their mother last Saturday.

Their sister Edit Huszti - the other triplet - said she spoke to them on a video call on New Year's Eve and they appeared happy and cheerful.

The "close-knit" family do not understand what may have happened to the pair who preferred to stay at home than go out.

Edit added that it was quite out of character for them to be out on the streets in the early hours of the morning.

The Huszti sisters were last seen on CCTV in Aberdeen's Market Street

A family statement addressed to friends and relatives was released on social media on Saturday.

The statement, which was in Hungarian and translated by BBC News, confirmed the sisters were missing.

It continued: "Therefore, we kindly ask everyone for respect.

"Please do not spread any unfounded rumours.

"We can only say what's already been in the news."

The family said the authorities in Scotland were carrying out investigations.

The statement concluded: "The family is not in a position to give everyone separate information.

"Thank you all for being with us in these difficult times."