Mystery of Leah Croucher's disappearance in Milton Keynes is no nearer to being solved after 14 months

Today marks the 14 month anniversary of the day Leah Croucher vanished without trace while walking to work.
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Yet police and her distraught family have no more real information today about what happened to her than they did on the morning she disappeared.

Her phone has never been found and her bank account remains untouched. There have been no confirmed sightings and, despite constant appeals, nobody has ever come forward with information that could solve the heartbreaking mystery.

This week family members have issued a poignant plea for people not to forget 20-year-old Leah during lockdown.

Leah CroucherLeah Croucher
Leah Croucher

Leah's aunt Teresa Nicholls said: "While you are either staying indoors where you should be to keep safe, or if you're a key worker trying to get to work and then get home safely to family, please continue to keep our beautiful Leah in your thoughts."

"Be grateful that while in lockdown you all know where your family are, even if you can’t all be together. We don’t have that. We still don’t know if Leah's inside and safe, or even if she is safe at all. We haven’t known for over a year ... Our whole family need to know so please keep sharing.

"Someone, somewhere knows something. Please have a heart and tell us where Leah is."

Leah's dad John Croucher, who lives on Emerson Valley, said: "Time is not making the pain and heartache any easier to bear. We just want to know why you are not here anymore, Leah."

Leah CroucherLeah Croucher
Leah Croucher

He added: "Did you choose this? Or did someone take you away? Please, please I hope you chose this. Because that means one day you may come back to us. Please come home Leah. We miss you so much. We will always love you.

"Come home our little princess. Please."

Last month John and his wife Claire, for the first time ever, publicly criticised police for not looking closely enough at someone the family believe may hold vital information about their daughter.

Since the day she vanished, the Crouchers have been urging police to speak to a key person in Leah's life at the time of her disappearance - and older man she seemed to be romantically involved with.

Leah CroucherLeah Croucher
Leah Croucher

But the man, who was engaged to be married before Leah vanished, has since denied they were in a relationship.

Because he cannot be named for legal reasons, the MK Citizen refers to him as Mr X.

John said: "Mr X is the only anomaly that was in Leah's life. The only thing she lied about. We feel information he may have is our only chance of finding her.

"We kept quiet because the police strongly advised us it was the right thing to do. They asked us to trust them. We have to finally and publicly admit we think they are wrong."

John says he and his wife Clare have provided police with "evidence" early on to prove 19-year-old Leah and Mr X were more than just good friends.

He said: "We worry that the police did not look more closely at him, his family, his friends. They didn't search cars or homes or workplaces. They searched the area he lives in, but that was all. He will not give permission to look at messages between the both of you. He destroyed those messages."

But police say they spoke to Mr X early in the investigation and have no reason to be suspicious.

Anybody with any information at all about Leah, particularly information about any relationship she might have been in, should call police on 101 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.