Family’s relief as girl found safe

still heading home now and have still to confirm where exactly she has been found. I am in contact with the police now to establish what exactly happened.”

He added: “Thank God and to everyone who helped.”

Maria’s uncle, Gheorghe Stelica, was trying to sell the car on David’s behalf via Gumtree when it was stolen in Manor Park, East London, with Maria inside, at about 4.30pm yesterday.

Gheorghe last night spoke of his relief that his niece had been found.

He said: “She is perfect, perfect, perfect. Thank god and all the local people who helped in the search.

“I feel born again. I feel am a new guy. I feel over 1,000-times relief. [My brother] he’s happy. He thanks so much the police for their service.” Car trader Gheorghe, 25, was outside London when the prospective buyer called so he got another brother, Claudia, to deal with him.

Gheorghe said: “I put the car on sale today and one guy called me on my phone.

“He didn’t seem suspicious, he was talking very nicely. I said to him, ‘If you don’t want to wait for me, no problem’. He said he didn’t want to see the car in the dark in case there’s a scratch.” Gheorghe said Maria was with his brother when the stranger met Claudia to inspect the £4,650 vehicle.

Claudia, 35, placed Maria on the passenger seat as he started the engine to demonstrate it. The potential buyer then asked to try the engine himself. Gheorghe added: “He jumped up in the driver’s side and – boom – straight away he went with the car. After that I received a call from my brother saying, ‘Call the police, your car was stolen’.”

The family had released a photo of Maria through police to help trace her.

A teacher visiting her parents said the family were distraught when they learned the motor was found without Maria.

Nazeen Saleh, 25, added: “I think the child’s grandmother was there and she went into a frenzy. She was like, ‘I can’t believe they have found the car but not the child’.”

MARIA’S UNCLE YESTERDAY