The girlfriend of a Great Yarmouth man believed to have been murdered and dumped in the River Yare spoke of her anguish last night of telling his children that he would be not around for Christmas Day.

The girlfriend of a Great Yarmouth man believed to have been murdered and dumped in the River Yare spoke of her anguish last night of telling his children that he would be not around for Christmas Day.

Father of three Derick Tempest was last seen on October 28 and police suspect that his body was ditched into the river that night.

Yesterday, his partner of nine years Sarah Sherfield told how she was trying to keep Christmas celebrations normal for their children - Regan, six, Charley, three and seven-month-old Reece.

But even though a Christmas tree is up in their Nottingham Way home and presents have been wrapped, Miss Sherfield faces the same agonising question everyday from her children - “Where's daddy?”

In an attempt to persuade anyone with information on Mr Tempest's disappearance to come forward, an emotional Miss Sherfield spoke exclusively to the EDP about her two month ordeal since he went missing.

The 28-year-old said: “I tell the children that their daddy is missing and that he loves them very much and that the police are doing all they can to find him. What else can I tell them?

“Christmas is going to be terrible and hard for us all as Derick was the life and soul of the party and just loved playing with the children with their presents while I was cooking.

“If anyone is reading this and knows anything about what happened to Derick can they please call the police so we can find Derick and get a sense of closure.”

Mr Tempest's mother, Lesley Tempest, 50, visits Miss Sherfield and the children everyday to help them cope during the ongoing murder inquiry.

Mrs Tempest, 50, said: “I want people to know about the suffering and pain we are all going through. It breaks my heart when I hear the children asking where their daddy is.”

Mr Tempest, 30, was last seen in the Blackfriars Road area of Yarmouth on the afternoon of October 28.

It is thought he was heading towards Hall's Garage in nearby Camden Place.

Five days after Mr Tempest went missing the bodies of garage owners, Jim Hall, 60, and Andrew Ventham, 49, both of nearby Queen's Road, were found in the garage. It is believed they killed themselves by carbon monoxide poisoning.

Because of forensic evidence found in the garage police launched a murder investigation on November 19.

Police suspect that a white van, registration T625HJW, seen leaving the garage on the night Mr Tempest disappeared may have taken his body to the South Denes area of Yarmouth to dump it in the River Yare.

Last week army divers and a specialist police sonar team searched the river for any sign of Mr Tempest but failed to find anything.

Anyone with information on the disappearance of Mr Tempest can call a dedicated investigation team on 01493 333080 or Norfolk Constabulary on 0845 4564567.