He was arrested late on Thursday after the parents of Rebecca Sawyer appealed to the driver to give himself up.

Rebecca was killed after the stolen Astra allegedly went through red lights in Ashington on New Year's Eve and collided with a car driven by Rebecca's father Steven.

Her 18-month old sister Kirsty remains critically ill in hospital.

Steven and Sharon Sawyer appealed to the driver

Police arrested two men and a woman, who were later released on police bail.

The suspected driver remains in custody.

The crash happened as the girl's father Steven drove his children from his mother's house to their home in Malvern Close, Ashington at about 2245 GMT on New Year's Eve.

He had earlier been out for a celebratory meal with his wife, who was already at home.

At a news conference at Newcastle General Hospital where Kirsty is being treated, police would not name the suspect, but said he was in his 20s and came from the Ashington area.

Mr Sawyer, a 33-year-old postman, appeared before the cameras with cuts across his face.

With his wife Sharon he paid tribute to Rebecca, saying: "She was a great kid, a beautiful kid, a really happy child and I will never see her again."

'Lovely years'

Mr Sawyer added: "She talked too much and that was her only fault. She was a smashing kid."

Mrs Sawyer, a 33-year-old nurse at Wansbeck General Hospital, said Rebecca was "like a little mother" to Kirsty.

She added: "We had six lovely years with her, that is what we have to think about."

Rebecca had been taken to Wansbeck General, where Mrs Sawyer is a nurse.

Inspector Paul Gilroy, who is leading the investigation, said: "It was particularly difficult for the staff at the hospital as they knew the family and as Rebecca's mother is a nurse."

Hospital staff were unable to resuscitate Rebecca, who died from her injuries at 0005 GMT on New Year's Day