The mother of a missing Moray woman has begun legal moves to ensure her children do not become victims of a tug-of-love battle, writes Graeme Smith.

It is now more than three weeks since Mrs Arlene Fraser disappeared from her home in Smith Street, New Elgin, some time after waving her children off to school.

With no clues, no suggestion she planned to go and no sightings, police believe she may have been abducted or murdered.

Ms Fraser, 33, a business studies student at Moray College, was separated from her husband, Mr Nat Fraser, 39, an Elgin businessman who was released on bail in March, after facing a charge of attempting to murder his wife.

For two weeks, maternal grandmother Mrs Isabelle Thompson looked after the children in their own home, but last week took them to her home in Hamilton, Lanarkshire. They subsequently went on holiday with Mrs Thompson's former husband his wife.

Now, Mrs Thompson has initiated proceedings at Hamilton Sheriff Court for interim residence of Jamie, 10, and five-year-old Natalie. She has also obtained an interim interdict to prevent the children being removed by her daughter or their father.

Mr Bill Wood, solicitor for Mrs Thompson, explained that it was a matter of procedure that both parents were named, but effectively it only related to Mr Fraser. Mrs Thompson said at her home yesterday: ''The court action is in the very early stages and, if need be, it will be explained to them they will need to stay here.

''I am doing this for the children. I want to give them a wee bit of stability and something of a normal life until we find out what happened to Arlene.''

She said she did not know if her daughter's husband would contest the action.