A MAN'S body was found last night hanging near the spot where a six-year-old girl was snatched from her bath.

Neighbours said the dead man matched the description of the abductor given to police by the girl.

And officers towed away a red hatchback car, similar to the description of one issued by detectives leading the inquiry, from outside the house where the body was discovered.

The police operation started at about 4.30pm at the house, near where the youngster was abducted in Willington Quay, North Tyneside.

Last night, a police officer stood guard at the door of the house in Bewick Road.

The youngster was seized from her bath in a sexually motivated attack, driven around Wallsend and then dumped, naked, bleeding and crying in an alley.

A Northumbria Police spokeswoman said: "We have responded to a report of a sudden death in Willington Quay. The death is not being treated as suspicious at this stage.

"Detectives working on the inquiry into the abduction of a six-year-old girl have been informed and are investigating.

"It is too early at this stage to say whether the two incidents are linked."

But neighbour Lynn Wickenden, 46, said: "I spoke to the lad who has died once over Christmas.

"He was just young, perhaps in his twenties or thirties. He had black hair, was about 5ft 4in tall and had sideburns - which is just as the girl described.

"He was quite thin and skinny."

She added: "Before this, this was a friendly area. I have been here seven years and there has never been any serious trouble of any kind.

"The lad lives in a house that had been converted into flats. I think they are all owned by the same landlord.

"The police arrived at about 4.30pm and an ambulance came down at the same time."

A major part of the inquiry centred around a red hatchback car, described by an eight-year-old boy as "like the one Ali G drives".

Last night, a red L-reg Ford Escort was towed away from outside the house where the man's body was found.

Another neighbour said: "The place has been crawling with police for two hours.

"There were far more police around than you would expect from an ordinary death at home.

"They were in white suits and they were guarding the house."

She added: "This place has been a horrible place to live since that little girl was taken away.

"People dare not let their children out of their sight for seconds, and you found yourself looking twice at everybody.

"Anyone who looked a little suspicious or strange suddenly became sinister, you found yourself looking at your neighbours and thinking 'was it you?'"

The girl was found naked in the alley on December 27.

She was discovered by decorator Geoff Brown and his family, who heard her screams. The girl is now said to be recovering well.

Her 71-year-old grandmother said: "She is doing well, she's a bright, chatty little thing and she seems to be doing okay.

"We have been told not to push her, but to let her talk things through at her own pace."