Leah Croucher’s dad and mom have spent an agonising three years and eight months ready for solutions after their daughter disappeared on 15 February 2019.
Leah, 19, vanished as she walked to work at a finance firm and was final seen on CCTV simply after 8.15am in Buzzacott Lane, a two-minute drive away from a home in Furzton, Milton Keynes.
But it was solely 4 days in the past on Monday, 10 October, when Thames Valley Police (TVP) obtained a tip-off from a member of the general public, that they began looking the property in Loxbeare Drive.
Officers found gadgets together with a rucksack and private possessions belonging to Leah.
Human stays had been discovered within the loft.
Officers had visited the home on at the very least two earlier events in the course of the investigation however there was no response.
They dropped a leaflet by the letterbox asking for the occupant to name if that they had info.
The pressure has since modified its investigation from a lacking individual’s probe to a homicide enquiry – as Leah’s dad and mom revealed how their “darkest fears had come true”.
Detectives insisted it’s the first time Leah’s disappearance was linked to the handle, regardless of an enormous search involving 4,000 house-to-house calls.
Following the newest developments, police have named the prime suspect as convicted intercourse offender Neil Maxwell, whose physique was discovered on 20 April 2019 after he killed himself.
TVP stated on Friday that in the complete investigation to seek out {the teenager}, “there has been no direct link between Maxwell and Leah until Monday”.
What have the police executed to seek out Leah since she disappeared?
TVP stated on Friday that from the “very outset” of its investigation, the “most experienced and capable detectives, led by a senior investigating officer” had been assigned to the case to display the pressure’s “determination” to seek out the 19-year-old.
In a press release launched on Friday, Detective Chief Superintendent Ian Hunter insisted “every reasonable line of enquiry” had been pursued “immediately and thoroughly”.
Efforts to find Leah included:
• Deploying lots of of officers and workers to seek for {the teenager}
• Reviewing 1,200 hours of CCTV
• Conducting greater than 4,000 house-to-house enquiries
• Searching lakes, open land and woodland
• Media appeals and providing rewards for assist
Leah’s dad and mom stated they consider police couldn’t have executed something in a different way and thanked them for his or her efforts.
They have described their ordeal as “one of the most difficult times of our lives”.
Missed alternatives to arrest prime suspect Neil Maxwell
Handyman Maxwell was employed in 2018 to finish some upkeep on the property in Loxbeare Drive, whose proprietor lives abroad.
Maxwell was the one individual with keys to the home, which was unoccupied when police visited to conduct their enquiries into Leah’s disappearance.
Maxwell was beforehand convicted for sexual offences in opposition to ladies and was needed in reference to a sexual assault in Newport Pagnell, on the outskirts of Milton Keynes, in November 2018.
The assault was initially reported to Bedfordshire Police on 29 November 2018 earlier than the case was transferred to TVP the next day.
The pressure made a complete of 18 failed makes an attempt to arrest Maxwell – initially at an handle in Milton Keynes on 30 November, when he was not current.
A nationwide chase ensued with police trailing the suspect across the nation.
Maxwell used false names and adjusted cell phone and autos
Mr Hunter stated in a press release: “Maxwell knew he was wanted in connection with the sexual assault and was travelling across the UK and making concerted efforts to evade arrest, including false names and changing his mobile phone and vehicles.
“He is prone to have identified that he could be returning to jail if he was arrested and convicted.”
TVP also shared Maxwell’s name with other forces in December 2018 and launched a public appeal on 4 April 2019 – just over a fortnight before he was found dead.
Mr Hunter added: “In April 2019, when we published our wanted appeal regarding Maxwell in connection with the sexual assault in Newport Pagnell, and during our entire investigation to find Leah, there has been no direct link between Maxwell and Leah until Monday this week when we were called about the property in Loxbeare Drive.
“If Maxwell had been alive as we speak, we’d be searching for his arrest in reference to this investigation, so he may very well be interviewed underneath warning to supply his account.”
“Whilst Maxwell has been nominated as a suspect, this doesn’t imply he’s responsible of any offence,” Mr Hunter added.
He vowed the force would keep an “open thoughts” as the investigation continues in the hope of “establishing the reality”.
Anyone with info is requested to name police on 101 quoting Op Innsbruck or contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555111.
Source: information.sky.com”