Do you know anyone who has just disappeared?

[Almostchristmastime]

I was reading about missing cases and I was surprised by how many people simply vanish, never to be seen again.
I don’t know of anyone personally who has just disappeared, but many years ago before my Dad retired, he had a work colleague, who was in his late 50’s, he left his work place and he’s believed to have never made it home. He simply just vanished, his family spent months trying to find him, there were no letters, or clues to his whereabouts and as far as I know, still remains missing to this day.

I once watched a video on YouTube (no idea how I happened across it) about drivers who go off the road into bushes for some reason - mechanical fault or medical incident meaning they drive off the road - and they’re never to be found again. One car was found years and years later in some wooded shrub land off the side of a dual carriageway, the body still inside. Very sad.

No thankgod I honestly think this is the worst thing a person can do. Id rather a family member/friend died then go missing the not knowing would kill me.

I do. My mother's friend disappeared when I was about 10, we used to go to her house and I'd play with her kids. We were there and had a picnic with them a few days before she disappeared.
She was lovely and adored her kids and no way would she walk out and leave them while they were in school. Someone did something to her I'm pretty sure.

She's never been found that was 50 years ago.

It does seem really strange in this day and age with so many cameras.

I know someone who went hill walking and never returned - mountain rescue searched for him but he was never found. Horrible for the family. He was a lovely man, it was such a shame.

There was a thread about this topic very recently. Maybe someone can find it and link?

Yes. I knew a man. He was in Spain went for a walk, never seen again. He was an older man but not particularly elderly. We now all believe he must have had some kind of a health issue and fallen into the water or something similar.

Yes. I met her. My friends had some ex work colleagues who moved to France and had a house near them. He had two adult sons. G and S . S was married and had two boys. Different stories from friends about if she had a mental health condition etc she was unhappy with him. Her mother had committed suicide. S claimed his wife had demanded cash which he gave her and she vanished. Car was found locally and she vanished. Over 15 years now and she had never once contacted her then teenage and now adult children. I am pretty certain she is dead. No evidence of this other than she never used a bank card and no phone calls etc

Yes. I work with search and rescue.

Yes. He 'disappeared into thin air' at the time. Later his case turned into a murder investigation with no body. The case has gone cold.

A friend of mine was out in Leeds one night on a Christmas do. One of the men disappeared and has never been seen or found since. They searched the canals but no sign of him. This was maybe 12 years ago now. So sad.

Years ago, the FIL of a friend of mine went out for his regular walk one evening and just disappeared. There was a massive search and rescue operation as he'd left behind his cards, wallet, phone etc so hadn't walked out on his wife or anything but he's never been found. Awful for the whole family, the endless waiting and hoping for news then having to accept that they're never going to know what happened.

I knew two men and a dog who went missing in the Atlantic. Very sad but not hugely unusual.

Here are the two other recent threads that a PP mentioned:

https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/_chat/5445288-people-that-vanish-and-dont-want-to-be-found?page=1

https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/_chat/5423370-could-you-go-missing-without-a-trace?page=1

Yes. She didn’t want to be found by her ex husband. Changed life, name, where she lived, friends. Just had to disappear as she didn’t feel safe

Yes. I was at school with a boy in sixth form. He went on holiday ( uk) with friends the summer after our A levels. Disappeared on a night out and never found. Devastating for his family.

I knew someone whose ex-husband did. He went out “to work” one morning and was never seen again. He did eventually instruct solicitors for just long enough for her to satisfy the court that he was still alive, but he didn’t engage with the proceedings so she managed to divorce him and get the house signed over to her.

3 people in my town. My NDN went out for a walk over 40 years ago and was never seen again. A woman and an elderly man similar.

Yes. A family member. They have since been declared as legally presumed dead. We believe they just got in with the wrong crowd and their disappearance was drug and gang related. We used to play together and grew up together. So sad.

A man from the village I grew up in. I was at school with his daughter, he worked at the same place as my dad. His wife ended up seriously unwell, and latterly suffered from schizophrenia. He was never found, and no record of cards, passport, anything - it was the 1990s, so less electronic tracking, but he left for work one morning, and was never seen again. It ruined the family's lives.

Do you think some of these people where put in witness protection, would there next of kin be informed

On of my friends disappeared. She was on a night out and left early she was found 6 weeks later sadly deceased.

It night be their next of kin & associates they are being protected from.

No. If you’re in witness protection, no one knows. Your family doesn’t exist anymore.

My father did in1968, not seen since.