Kerry's gone to spies-land

She hires detectives in custody battle

By Matthew Acton

DEVIOUS Kerry Katona has hired a team of private eyes at £500 a day in a bitter fight to win custody of a little girl.

Click here for pics of Kerry Katona over the years

The cocaine-snorting Iceland ads star, facing bankruptcy by Christmas over a £200,000 tax debt, wants help to blacken the name of her hubby's ex-lover.

She and former drug dealer Mark Croft are battling Louise Oortwyn for custody of his daughter Keeley, six.

HAVE YOUR SAY HERE

So in an ironic twist, mum-to-be Kerry, who has smoked and drunk while pregnant and snorted cocaine, has hired the gumshoes to find evidence that LOUISE is a bad mother.

Two investigators, one in a Renault Clio, arrived at Louise's home in Warrington, Cheshire, last Wednesday to begin their round-the-clock watch. The mission is scheduled to last a fortnight, running up a £7,000 bill.

The team were briefed by Kerry, 27, at her £1.2m Wilm-slow home. She told them to follow Louise, 29 — her ex best pal — and snap all her visitors.

A pal of former Atomic Kitten Kerry said: "She'll do anything to win Keeley for Mark. But it's really about Kerry wanting to destroy Louise after they fell out.

"The fact she's prepared to pay £500 a day shows how seriously she's taking her financial crisis!

"She's hoping Louise is hanging around with dodgy characters so she can show she's unfit to look after her daughter. It's ironic considering Kerry's past.

"Louise's team are sure Mark's custody case will fail." Kerry and Louise clashed last year, when Kerry wrongly accused Louise of seeing Mark, 37. Louise then told of her drug-taking.

Kerry is also battling ex-husband Brian McFadden, for custody of daughters Molly and Lilly-Sue. His legal team say Kerry is an unfit mum.