Her car was found in Coupar Angus, six miles from her home, at the weekend.

Now police have cordoned off two wooded areas.

They will be the focus of “meticulous searches” by officers, as well as specialists from the National Policing Improvement Agency and scientific experts, a police spokesperson said.

The searches are scheduled to begin tomorrow.

As a result of enquiries at the weekend, a 48-year-old man from Perthshire is due to appear before a sheriff at Perth on charges relating to theft. It is understood the theft allegation relates to Ms Maclean’s car.

The dark green Vauxhall Astra was traced to the car park of Grampian Country Foods in George Street, Coupar Angus, at about 9.45am on Saturday.

Ms Maclean was not in the car and there was no trace of her in the immediate area.

The investigation to trace Ms Maclean is continuing and officers are appealing to anyone who has seen her or her car (registration number SP52 NYM) to call 0845 600 5705.

The last confirmed sighting of her was at Tesco Extra in Perth’s Crieff Road mid-morning on Saturday, May 31.

She was last seen at her home in Duchess Street, Stanley, on Friday, May 29.

A police spokesperson commented, “Given Dolina’s age, the passage of time since she was last seen and the fact her car has now been recovered, all leads us to have great concern for her safety.

“We appeal to anyone who may have seen Dolina or her dark green Vauxhall Astra in the Coupar Angus, Burrelton and Stanley areas between May 31 and when it was found to contact Tayside Police immediately.”

Ms Maclean is 5ft 5in, with long fair hair and blue/grey eyes. When last seen she was wearing a three-quarter length black or dark blue coat. It’s also believed she would have been wearing a blue jumper and black trousers.

She suffers from arthritis and has some mobility problems, which means she will use a walking stick and, occasionally, a walking frame.

Ms Maclean has been described as a “quiet old soul who kept herself to herself”.

Police were today standing guard outside the well-maintained detached home in Stanley which, it is understood, she shared with her sister.

Staff at the post office in Stanley said Ms Maclean came in once a month to pay her paper bill.

“We rarely saw her other than that,” a female worker said.

“She got her papers delivered and just came in monthly to pay the bill. She was not very talkative.”

Meanwhile, a fellow pensioner from Stanley described Ms Maclean as a “quiet old soul”.

“It is terrible to think something may have happened to her,” she continued.

“She was not really involved in village life and was not a member of the WRI or anything.

“Really, she kept herself to herself.”

Ms Maclean was a regular customer at the local butcher’s, although she phoned in her order rather than collecting it.

“She phoned in regularly, once a week on a Friday, and we dropped her order off,” said an assistant at the shop.

“We hardly ever saw her out and about in the village.”

Neighbours preferred not to talk about her disappearance but confirmed that she kept herself to herself.