But officers said no evidence had been found to verify any of the allegations made since 12-year-old Rory's body was discovered in woodland ten weeks ago.

Police last month launched an investigation into claims that strangers tried to abduct children in cars three times in the village of Stoneyburn.

He said: "Parents and their children have been more vigilant since Rory's murder and we've seen a significant rise in the number of these incidents reported to us.

"All the reports will be investigated to the best of our ability and we would encourage the public to continue contacting us where they have concerns.

"But since August 18, when Rory disappeared, there has been no evidence to prove that these incidents took place. They've all been thoroughly investigated and none could be verified.

"In one incident, we had a report of a man acting suspiciously who turned out to be from a church group. He was in the area looking for another member of his church."

Detectives submitted a report to the procurator fiscal naming 37-year-old Harris as the sole suspect in the case. He took his own life as the police closed in on him.

He added: "The report to the procurator fiscal is now 'sub judicia' which means we cannot discuss its content until the Crown Office complete their findings. People think we have something to hide, but we're simply not allowed to talk about it by law."

The village of Stoneyburn saw three reports of attempted abductions by strangers in cars. Last month an 11-year-old boy claimed a man tried to pull him into a car on Main Street.

Child sex killer Robert Black was convicted in 1994 of abducting and murdering three schoolgirls, including five-year-old Caroline, who was killed in 1983.

But Morrison Bakhsh, chairman of Stoneyburn Community Council, said residents remained worried following the reports of abduction attempts in the village.

This is cache, read story here