RUNAWAY NET GIRL 'BESOTTED'

THE 12-year-old girl who ran off to France with ex-US marine Toby Studabaker is still so besotted with him that she is refusing to help police with their investigations.

Shevaun Pennington, who secretly fled her home near Manchester to be with the 31-year-old, remains under his spell, say family friends.

Although she has been telling specially-trained women police officers some details of what happened during their five-day escapade through Europe, she has refused to fully co-operate.

Studabaker, who is being held in Germany and likely to be extradited to Britain next week, has denied he had any sexual contact with Shevaun although they stayed in the same hotel.

"Poor Shevaun believes that she is in love with Studabaker," said a friend. "She has been completely taken in and brainwashed by him.

"She is totally besotted with him."

Studabaker, who met Shevaun in an internet chatroom, pretended she was his niece as they flew from Manchester to Paris last month.

He told police in Germany where he was arrested that he did not know she was only 12 until he first met her.

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