A 46-year-old local man has been arrested in the Machynlleth area where five-year-old April Jones was apparently abducted on Monday night. Police said he had been taken to a police station in Aberystwyth for questioning, but April has not been found.
At a press conference on Tuesday afternoon, Detective Superintendent Reg Bevan, of Dyfed-Powys police, said: "We are continuing our investigation to find April, however, within the last hour we have arrested a 46-year-old male from the Machynlleth area who is being detained at Aberystwyth police station.
"We made the arrest just outside Machynlleth and we are hopeful this individual will assist us in finding April, who is still missing. We are still pursuing all lines of inquiry with the view that April is still alive and we will continue to do so until we find her.
"For obvious reasons we are not able to give you details of the individual that we have assisting us with our inquiries."
The man had a similar vehicle as the one described and was arrested on foot walking outside the town. The vehicle has been located and is being examined.
Bevan said the police's priority was to find April and bring her home to her family.
Coral Jones, 40, and her husband Paul, 43, were due to appeal for information at the police press conference in Aberystwyth just under 22 hours after their daughter was seen getting into a van-type vehicle on Monday evening.
Officers said they were becoming increasingly concerned for the safety of the five-year-old, who disappeared while playing out with a friend near her home on the Bryn-y-Gog estate in the market town in Dyfi valley, north of Aberystwyth.
Earlier the force said she had apparently got into a vehicle willingly, prompting a major search by officers and scores of volunteers.
Police confirmed they were looking closely at the movements of known registered sex offenders living in the area.
Meanwhile, in north Wales, a 12-mile stretch of the A487 has been closed off by police. The force referred all inquiries to Dyfed-Powys police.