• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to footer

News and entertainment worth sharing – York and North Yorkshire

  • News
  • Things to do
  • Radio
  • Vouchers
  • Categories
    • Business
  • More
    • Comments
    • Advertise
    • Contact us
The GRand York York

‘Unsatisfactory and grossly cruel’: Claudia gravel pits search ends with no significant finds

Sunday 5 September, 2021 @ 2.36 pm Crime YorkMix
Share via...

Detectives investigating the disappearance and assumed murder of Claudia Lawrence have ended their search of the Sand Hutton Gravel Pits.

Nothing significant has been found.

Detective Superintendent Wayne Fox, Head of the Major Investigation Team, has confirmed that nothing of obvious significance was located during searches of part of the wooded area and in the smaller of the two lakes.

Claudia Lawrence

Police say that a small number of items were recovered during the two-week search. Whilst these items are being assessed for their forensic potential, any relevance to Claudia’s disappearance has not currently been established.

Listen: Martin Dales, friend of Peter Lawrence, on YorkMix Radio

Claudia’s family, who continue to be updated by North Yorkshire Police, have been made aware.

Martin Dales, a close friend and spokesman for Claudia’s father, Peter Lawrence, said:

“This is very sad news that, despite these recent detailed and extensive searches by the police, there remains no further information on the whereabouts of Claudia Lawrence for the 150 months she has now been missing.

Hole in Wand #ad

“This is totally unsatisfactory and grossly unfair and cruel on all who care about Claudia.

“How many more times have family, friends and police got to appeal for the information needed to be with the police to bring closure, good or bad, for this seemingly never ending nightmare.”

Peter Lawrence died in February 2021.

Divers involved

Police search the drained lake at Sand Hutton. Photograph: Tom Maddick / SWNS

Teams of police search experts, specially trained search dogs, divers and forensic archaeologists took part in the search, which began on 24 August and concluded today (5 September).

Det Supt Fox, who is leading the enquiry, said that separate strands of information had been received by detectives investigating Claudia’s disappearance.

He said: “When we assessed these separate and independently-sourced pieces of information against the wealth of information already generated during the last 12 years, we found they correlated with other information pointing to the area of Sand Hutton.

Cycle Heaven York
Cycle Heaven York
Cycle Heaven York
Cycle Heaven #ad

Trending

  1. Yorkshire Water announces hosepipe ban – Here are the full restrictions
  2. York shop to shut – launches a 50% off closing down sale
  3. Two Yorkshire cities make shortlist to host Eurovision 2023

“We then consulted a number of national experts in various different disciplines and concluded that we could not discount the possibility that Sand Hutton Gravel Pits could have a major relevance in explaining what happened to Claudia.“

Armed with fresh information to the enquiry, that seemed to corroborate known facts, we were duty bound to conduct thorough searches of the area. Not searching was not an option – not for Claudia, not for her family, and not for the wider public.”

He added: “As a result of the publicity surrounding the last two weeks, members of the public have come forward with new information for which I am grateful. This will be assessed and investigated in the coming days and weeks.

“In the light of some media speculation, I would like to stress, however, that we are not liaising with any other police force in relation to these new lines of enquiry.”

“As I hope the events of the last two weeks demonstrate, we are committed to establishing what happened to Claudia and bringing closure for her family. You cannot fail to be moved by the ongoing suffering of a mother who does not know what has happened to her daughter. I again repeat the request to those who know what has happened to Claudia, to do the right thing, come forward and help end the torment of Claudia’s family.

”If you have any information that could assist the investigation, please contact North Yorkshire Police on 101, select option 1, and pass details to the Force Control Room quoting “Claudia Lawrence”.

Footer

YorkMix
News 01904 848 766
Email YorkMix news »
5-6 King's Court, Shambles, York  YO1 7LD
YorkMix Radio
General enquiries 01904 375 029
Studio/competitions 01904 375 030
Email YorkMix Radio »
Selby Superbowl, Bawtry Road, Selby  YO8 8NA
YorkMix is a trading name of YorkMix Media Ltd
Registered in England
Company number: 07814727
VAT number: 154 0364 34
© York Sound Ltd

Copyright © 2022 YorkMix Media Ltd

We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies.
Cookie settingsACCEPT
Manage consent

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Non-necessary
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
SAVE & ACCEPT