DETECTIVES investigating the disappearance of James Brodie are searching a Lincolnshire canal.
Police have been hunting the 19-year-old since 2003 when Arnold jeweller Marian Bates was killed during a robbery.
Searches at Maize Farm, in East Heckington, Lincolnshire, last month resulted in "samples" being sent for scientific analysis.
Divers are now searching a canal off the A17 at Swineshead Bridge, between Boston and Sleaford.
A police spokesman said: "The search of the canal in Lincolnshire is part of a number of ongoing inquiries in connection with Brodie's disappearance.
"The specialist underwater search unit will be checking the canal to see if they can find anything that is possibly linked to James Brodie's death.
"We did search a farm in East Heckington last month and are awaiting results from a number of samples that were collected and sent away for further scientific analysis."
The Post understands that the search is not the result of new information. It is expected to continue until the end of the week.
Dean Betton, 32, of Raleigh Street, Radford, has been charged with Brodie's murder.
A 31-year-old man and a 34-year-old man, who were also arrested on suspicion of murder, remain on bail, pending further inquiries.
Brodie, of Bulwell, has not been seen since 2003. Police want to speak to him about the robbery at The Time Centre, Arnold,
Grandmother Mrs Bates, 64, was shot in front of her husband Victor and their daughter Xanthe.
Peter Williams, 19, was jailed for 22 years after being convicted of murder.
In legal submissions during the trial, the judge heard Williams told police that Bestwood crime boss Colin Gunn was behind the raid.
The court heard that Williams took part in the robbery but that an accomplice – believed to be Brodie – fired the fatal shot.
Notts detectives have previously searched for Brodie's body at a fish farm in Leicestershire, on land near Flintham and at flats in Top Valley and Bulwell.
But the search at Maize Farm, which started on Monday, February 4, and continued for one week, was believed to have been the first in connection with Brodie since 2007.