THE death of Sarah Everard has triggered an outpouring of grief from the British public.
There has been anger at how an innocent life has been taken, shock at the realisation that this could have been a daughter, sister, partner or friend of any of us, and a collective will to do all we can to make our streets safer for women.
The former Durham University student went missing while walking home from a friend’s flat in south London.
It was the type of journey millions of women take every day in this country.
And it was a journey she should have been able to complete.
The nation is outraged, perhaps more so than at any point, that in 21st century Britain, women are not safe on our streets through no fault of their own.
But why has this particular incident attracted such anger?
Steve Turner, Conservative Police and Crime commissioner candidate, said we must continue to channel that public energy into searching out those who go astray.
He said: “One murder is too many and one missing person impacts on hundreds of lives. We mustn’t however use recent events to politicise the situation, a young woman has lost her life and her family doesn’t deserve that.
“From a public perception however I think the impact of Sarah’s story may just sharpen people’s minds in the short term when it comes to appeals for information.”
Sarah’s disappearance is a tragedy.
But it is not the only similar case we know about.
Like Sarah, Naheed Khan vanished without trace in May 2018.
She was a mother and she would become a grandmother, but at the time of her disappearance, she wasn’t to know.
Living in Thornaby, near Stockton, at the time she went missing, Cleveland Police now fear she is dead.
They launched a murder investigation despite her body never being found.
Over time, officers have completed more than 5,500 investigative actions and spoken to more than 2,600 people regarding her disappearance.
They say they have done everything they can to try and find Naheed.
Nearly three years on, there are still many unanswered questions, and in the middle of all this, a family desperate for answers.
Cleveland Police confirmed, after years of extensive investigation work into her disappearance, the senior police officer leading the enquiry for answers has scaled back the search, adding it would now be a reactive investigation.
Then senior investigation officer, Detective Chief Inspector Mark Dimelow said: “We have done everything we can at this stage, but there are people out there who are not being honest and know what has happened to Naheed. I hope that one day they find it within themselves to do the right thing and tell the truth.
Mr Turner added: “It’s a sad fact in our society that too many people go missing on a day to day basis. Thankfully the vast majority of these are found but occasionally tragedies like Sarah Everard occur and occasionally families like Naheed’s never get to know what happened to their loved ones.”
- Tomorrow: The North-East sports fan who went on a dream trip to the Athens Olympics and never came home
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