Patricia Duncan, 51, went missing on November 15, 2002, after going to bed having watched a film at her home in Buckie, Moray.
A Scots gran has been missing for nearly 24 years after vanishing without trace.
Patricia Duncan, 51, went missing on November 15, 2002, after going to bed having watched a film at her home in Buckie, Moray. She was never seen again.
Her daughter, Johan, 47, told the Mirror: “Mum was a loving, caring mother, who did everything for her family. She loved looking after her grandchildren. My son Matthew was five when she went missing, I worked in a shop and she helped out with childcare. In the week she disappeared she’d been picking him up from school as possible. There were no signs that anything was wrong.
“On the night of the 15th November 2002, my sisters Fiona and Louise, and my mum and were at my parent’s house watching movies. My sisters went to bed and mum and dad stayed up to watch another, before heading to bed about midnight. When dad got up in the morning there was no sign of mum. She took her jacket, cigarettes and lighter – no purse. We had a lot of animals at the time – rabbits, ducks, pigs – but she wasn’t out feeding them. Dad drove around town to look for her, before going to the police.”
Johan says it was out of character for her mum to leave without leaving a note. Extensive police searches were conducted for Patricia but sadly, she was never found.
Johan said: “To leave without a word was so out of character. She used to leave a note when she was going to the shops – let alone leaving in the middle of the night. Police performed a door to door search, and took out a cadaver dog, and the family searched along the coastline, in case she’d gone for a walk.
“Nothing. Nobody heard a word from her ever again. Over the years we’ve had sightings, with the odd person saying they’ve seen someone who fits her description, one as far as Malta, but all have come to nothing. Darren once saw a lady he was sure was mum, but on closer inspection turned out to be stranger.”
Despite being missing for more than two decades, Patricia’s family firmly believe she is still alive.
Johan said: “When you have a family member that passes away you have closure, but we don’t have that – it hangs over us all the time. You learn to live with it, but it’s always there. Birthdays, Christmases and on Mother’s Day it’s especially hard. When I’m at the shops I still think, mum would love that. And at first I would buy it to keep for her return. But as so much time passed, I stopped.
“I feel sad for my children, who were stripped of growing up with their grandma. Although we’ve told them all about her, and they scan around to look for her. The police concluded that mum had probably gone into the sea, although her case remains open. We hardly ever hear from them now.
“We went down the route of presumption of death, so dad could get his affairs in order, but truth be told we don’t think she is dead. We’re still actively searching for her. We hope one day someone – or mum – will see something in a paper, and get in touch. But as the years go on it’s getting harder. Ultimately, we just want her to be happy, and to know that she’s alive. We all love and miss her very much.”
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