Three people have been arrested on suspicion of murder more than 20 years after a man went missing in north-east England.

Robert Scott Clive, 30, originally from Stranraer, Dumfries and Galloway, was living in North Shields when he disappeared on 10 October 2002.

The disappearance of Clive, who was known as Scott, prompted police to launch a murder investigation, but his body was never found.

Northumbria police said on Saturday that “new information” led them to arres two men in their 40s and 50s, and a woman in her 40s, who remain in police custody.

An address in the Coronation Street area of North Shields, which Clive is known to have visited on the night he went missing, is being searched, the force said. The current occupant, who moved in after 2002, has been put in alternative accommodation while police carry out their inquiries.

Clive was last seen alive in the Coronation Street area shortly after 11pm. A man matching Clive’s description was last seen in the early hours of the following morning near the banks of the River Tyne.

Det Insp Mark Atherton said: “We are doing everything we can to provide Scott’s family with the answers they deserve.

“Upon receiving new information, we have taken the decision to arrest two men and a woman in relation to Scott’s disappearance. They remain in custody while our inquiries are ongoing. However, we still believe there could be key information that people know in the local community.

“I am again urging anybody who lived on Coronation Street at the time of his disappearance, or has information about Scott’s movements that night, to come forward. The information you have could prove key in our investigations.”

Police said they have reviewed hundreds of hours of CCTV footage and spoken to witnesses since they launched their investigation more than 20 years ago.