POLICE working to find a teenage mum and her baby son who are missing from Cumbria have thanked the public for coming forward with information.

Officers issued an appeal last week to trace a commuter who was seen on CCTV talking to 15-year-old Catalina Covaci at Manchester Piccadilly train station on December 19 - the date she was last seen in Penrith.

As a result of the appeal, a commuter who spoke to the youngster has made contact with officers, along with three other people from the Manchester area. 

The commuter, who is also from Manchester, is the last person known to have seen Catalina on the day she went missing.

Police said she provided 'useful information' as to Catalina’s travel intentions.

Her movements in Manchester from that point are unconfirmed, and officers are trying to establish where she travelled from Manchester Piccadilly.

Saturday marked the one month anniversary of Catalina’s disappearance with her baby son, Ricardo, and police said they were continuing to treat the case 'very seriously'.

Officers are planning to search a number of properties around the world, including in the UK, over the next week in a bid to locate her.

Calalina is originally from Romania but has lived in Cumbria for 18 months.

Detective Inspector Furzana Nazir said: “We want to thank everyone who has taken the time to look at Catalina and Ricardo’s photographs and phone in with information.

“The information we have received has been helpful and each potential sighting has been followed up.

“We would much rather someone contact us with information that turns out not to be relevant, than them be afraid to contact us in case it’s not important.

“Catalina and Ricardo have been missing for over a month. At this stage in the investigation, the smallest piece of information could make a big difference to us so I’d urge anyone who can, to call us and help.

“We are continuing to explore a number of lines of enquiry and still believe that there may be people out there she knows, or who know of her, who are ‘assisting’ her.

“If this is the case, then they are likely to be committing a criminal offence. These two children are vulnerable and need to be located, quickly.

“Please, if you know where they are or if you think you have seen them, get in touch.”

Catalina has not been seen since Wednesday 19 December 2012 when she left her Penrith home, telling her guardians she was taking a routine walk into Penrith town centre with her son.

Catalina was caught on CCTV with her son at Penrith train station on the morning of Wednesday, December 19 before travelling on a train from Penrith to Manchester Piccadilly which arrived at around 1.40pm the same day.

She hasn’t been seen since.

Catalina is described as having very long straight hair which is often worn in a bun.

She is of a medium-heavy build and has a dark complexion.

Anyone who thinks they have seen Catalina or Ricardo, or has any information that could help police find them, is asked to contact Cumbria Police on 101 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.