By REBECCA CAMBER and ARTHUR MARTIN

Last updated at 08:29 04 March 2008

Police digging up the "Colditz" care home discovered more bones yesterday as the inquiry into sickening child abuse allegations escalated.

The remains were found close to where forensic officers found a skull beneath several inches of concrete on the ground floor of Haut de la Garenne in Jersey.

A sniffer dog went "berserk" when he was led close to the bones, sparking police fears that they could be the remains of another body.

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The chamber where children were abused beneath the 'Colditz' children's home of Haut de la Garenne in Jersey <br /> <strong>Click image to enlarge</strong>

The discovery came after the first picture of a "punishment room" at the home was released, revealing a haunting message written on the wall.

A giant stone bath tub stood in the centre of the room and up to 25 children at a time would be forced to sit in freezing water as the abusers watched.

On a nearby wooden post is the message scrawled by an inmate: "Iv been bad 4 years & years."

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Deputy chief officer Lenny Harper replies to questions today at the Jersey children's home

The bones have been sent to a laboratory to ascertain if they are human and if they date back to the period when the abuse took place at the children's home in St Martin, Jersey.

In a day of dramatic developments, police revealed they have been overwhelmed by hundreds of phone calls from victims and witnesses reporting allegations of abuse over the last few days.

They may have to set up a dedicated call centre to deal with the volume of calls more effectively.

The number of full-time officers investigating the child abuse case has almost doubled in this week as officers continue to work long hours in the hope of achieving a significant breakthrough.

Deputy police chief Lenny Harper revealed that the number of suspects had risen to 40, which includes many now living on the British mainland.

It was reported today that one suspect is Wilfred Krichekfski, a leading member of Jersey's political establishment, who died in 1974.

Former senator Mr Krichekfski allegedly visited the home regularly to abuse boys up to his death, the Times claimed.

A former resident says he was raped in the early Sixties by the senator after being woken up by a care worker with the words: "There is someone here to see you."

The only person he told about the abuse was a psychiatrist who reportedly told him he would be placed in a mental hospital if he repeated the allegations.

A police spokesman said today: "We do have a list of suspects but we will not reveal any of the names on that list."

Asked if the team was any closer to making an arrest, Mr Harper said: "Suspects are one thing, we need evidence to convict people. If we get any evidence that they are trying to leave the island we have got a team at the ports and we will take the necessary action."

Detectives have questioned victims and witnesses in Australia, Thailand, the UK and several countries within Europe, including Germany.

Mr Harper, who is leading the inquiry, said there was a "culture" of abuse at the home during certain periods.

"I think we are looking at a culture of abuse rather than a paedophile ring," he said. "There is an excavation of a second site within the house.

"Archaeologists have taken out a few items. But it is too early to say whether they are significant. They're possibly pieces of bone."

Police are also trying to establish how many children killed themselves at the home.

This line of inquiry emerged after relatives of a child who committed suicide contacted police to ask for an investigation into the death.

Mr Harper said he felt there were issues surrounding the suicide claims which need "to be looked at" but he dismissed the suggestion that the victim was murdered.

The number of alleged victims who suffered physical or sexual abuse at Haut de la Garenne is now more than 160.

Many claim they were repeatedly raped, tortured and beaten in tiny, airless "punishment cells" below the ground floor by staff and visitors at the home from the early Fifties to 1986, the year it closed.

The horror unfolding at Haut de la Garenne - known locally as Colditz - threatens to become the worst childcare scandal on British soil.

Police are currently examining seven separate "hot-spots" inside and outside the building where the bodies of boys and girls could be buried.

In other developments, police are attempting to compile a list of those who went missing from the home.

But detectives are being hampered because the evidence they have is anecdotal and often only includes a child's first name or nickname.

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Patricia Thornton: 'It's awful if it's true but I saw no evidence of it when I was there'

Police also revealed that former children's television host Jimmy Saville had visited the home on several occasions during the Seventies but is not part of their inquiry.

A former volunteer, Christine Bowker, also revealed today that she had she encountered children "frozen with fear" while working at the home in the early Seventies.

She claimed that she was met with a "wall of silence" when she tried to raise concerns and eventually left because she was worried about the conduct of some staff.

Ms Bowker said: "[The staff] watched me very carefully with the children and if the children relaxed at all or responded to my affection, they glared at the children then the children just went back into their shells.

"When I left... and I left in distress and abuse I received from some of the staff... I couldn't get anybody to listen to the problem," she said.

However, Patricia Thornton, who was responsible for the wellbeing of youngsters in the home from the early Fifties to 1973, insists she took no part in any abuse or cover-up.

The 85-year-old, who lives in the village of Cheriton, Hampshire, said: "It's awful if it's true but I saw no evidence of it when I was there.

"I just find it difficult to believe that all these horrible things were going on and I knew nothing about it."

Miss Thornton, who received an MBE in 1996 for her services to the community, said she was proud of her work at the home.

She added: "When I first arrived in Jersey, there was a home for boys at Haut de la Garenne and a separate home for girls which was not being run very well.

"I was very concerned about the welfare of the girls so I closed it down, pensioned off the lady who had been running it and moved the girls into the boys' home. I was very surprised when I read about the scandal. I feel quite shattered."

But police are continuing to treat Morag Jordan, a former matron at the home, as a suspect.

Angus Council in Scotland confirmed on Monday that Mrs Jordan had been suspended from her post delivering meals on wheels to the elderly.

A spokesman said: "Given the attention currently focused on Mrs Jordan, she has been reassigned to other duties."

Mrs Jordan, who lives in Kirriemuir with her husband Tony, claims she had no involvement with the abuse of children at the home.

And in a clear sign that politicians in Whitehall are taking the scandal seriously, senior justice officials from Jersey States have held talks in London with officials at the Ministry of Justice.

A Ministry of Justice spokesman said: "Clearly, Jersey officials, who requested the meeting, will update their ministry of justice counterparts on the continuing police investigations which are clearly potentially very serious.

"It would not be appropriate to speculate about the outcome of those investigations."