Police are hunting the owner of a Vauxhall Cavalier which they believe was used in a knifepoint hijack of a mother and her children from a city centre car park.

Jenny Hill, 38, spent ten terrifying minutes with a knifeman after he sneaked into the back of her Subaru Impreza car as she parked in the Kirkgate Centre.

Her ordeal only came to an end when the hijacker, who held a knife to her throughout the ordeal, ordered the mother and her children, aged two and three, out of their vehicle in Norcroft Street, off Thornton Road.

Detective Chief Inspector Roger Gasson, of Bradford CID, said he believed the driver of the light blue Vauxhall Cavalier, registration F506 SGM, then followed the Impreza to an area off Thornton Road.

The car was found dumped in Exley Mount on the Glen Lee Estate immediately after the hijack.

Det Chief Insp Gasson said: "I believe this Cavalier was involved in the hijacking from the city centre, from the Kirkgate Centre, and the driver actually waved the Subaru out before following it.

"The Subaru was seen driving in Northside Road only 500 yards from where the Cavalier was dumped on the Glen Lee estate.

"The Cavalier was not reported stolen and we are anxious to trace this vehicle and the driver and any witnesses who saw the exchange of these vehicles in the Thornton Road area.

"We also want to know who owned it prior to Saturday or who may have sold it on. This was a terrifying experience for the mother and her children, although I would stress that this is a very unusual incident."

The detective said the Cavalier, which was found on the same day as the hijack last Saturday afternoon, had undergone a full forensic test.

The officers discovered the Subaru Impreza two days later burnt out in Pemberton Drive just outside the city.

Police describe the hijacker as Asian, in his early 20s, slim and clean shaven. He wore a track suit or sports suit and a blue and black cap with a bit of white in it.

The second man was also Asian, in his late 20s, fat and dirty looking, with stubble and a bloodshot eye. He wore a three-quarter length jacket.

Anyone with information should contact Bradford CID on (01274) 376459.