The two prime suspects in the murder of have-a-go hero Kevin Jackson were spotted in Bradford in the past 48 hours, police revealed this afternoon.

And detectives said the net was closing in on the men after they searched 21 houses in the city last night and today - and said they feared the pair were being shielded.

Officers said it was clear Bradford residents were shielding the two men - 19-year-old Rangzaib Akhtar and Raees Khan, 20, - and called for them to be handed over to the law after they were spotted in the Manningham and Girlington areas of the city over the past two nights.

Police took the unusual step of naming the men who are wanted in connection with the brutal beating of father-of-two Kevin Jackson. He was attacked and stabbed in the head with a screwdriver after he tried to stop a gang from stealing his father-in-law's car in Halifax.

Detective Superintendent Bob Bridgestock, who is in charge of the murder inquiry, said this afternoon: "To the people whose homes we have searched, I thank them for their co-operation. I don't apologise for these searches, they are a necessary inconvenience to them until the people responsible for Kevin Jackson's brutal murder are caught.

"There are specific reasons why the addresses were searched and that is because a member of the house is known to either of the suspects."

And he had a clear message for those intent on giving them a hiding place while the search went on.

"There are a number of people who know exactly where these two are and are still helping them to move about. I'm still appealing directly to their families and the community not to shield these two and to come forward with specific information about their whereabouts.

"More than 100 calls have come into the incident room since the release of the two suspects' photos."

One caller has suggested that Khan has obtained a Pakistan passport and police revealed today that he was the one that unsuccessfully tried to obtain a British passport from the Liverpool passport office.

The caller also suggested that he might try to leave the country via Ireland. All ports and airports have been alerted to the suspects' identities.

Anyone with information is asked to contact the incident room on (01422) 337156.