Caroline Dickinson suspect held in Paris

HANDCUFFED in the back of a police car, the man suspected of raping and murdering 13-yearold Caroline Dickinson is driven through Paris to appear before a judge today.

A sheet of paper he used to hide his face from photographers falls away to give a glimpse of Francisco Arce Montez. The 51-year-old, an itinerant Spanish waiter, was placed under formal investigation 50 minutes after stepping off a flight to Paris from Miami under police guard.

Montez was driven to a court in the suburb of Bobigny. There he was accused of the rape and murder of Caroline at a Brittany youth hostel dormitory in July 1996 as four Cornish school friends slept nearby. He said nothing as the charges were read out to him and he was ordered to be taken down to the cells.

A court- appointed lawyer made a brief application for bail which was rejected.

Montez is expected to be transferred to Rennes in Brittany where he will be held on remand until a date for trial is set.

This could be more than a year away and he is not expected to make any more public courtroom appearances until his trial, legal sources said today.

Montez was arrested in Miami nine months ago on unrelated charges of indecent assault. DNA from Montez matched samples-found at the hostel where Caroline was suffocated. Montez is also wanted on sex and assault charges in Germany and Belgium.

A US judge yesterday decided to drop the charges he faced in Miami for burglary and indecent assault so his extradition could take place.

Caroline's father John Dickinson said today he thought it was " inappropriate" for the family to comment while legal proceedings are pending in France.

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