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The Disappearance Of Margaret Fleming

rynner2

Gone But Not Forgotten
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Aug 7, 2001
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This is a strange one:
Garden dug up of missing woman last seen in public in 1999

The garden of a woman reported missing in Inverclyde six weeks ago is to be excavated after it emerged she was last seen in public 17 years ago.
Police Scotland said that apart from her carers, the last independent sighting of Margaret Fleming was on 17 December 1999 at a family gathering.
The 36-year-old was reported missing by her two carers from her home in Inverkip at about 17:40 on 28 October.

Officers want to hear from anyone who knew Ms Fleming from her college days.
Ms Fleming, who is believed to have learning difficulties, is thought to have attended James Watt College in Greenock between 1996 and 1998.
Police said she had few contactable friends or family and checks on education, employment, health and welfare records had shown no trace of her.

An ongoing search of her house in Main Road will now extend into the garden, which police say will be extensive and will involve some excavation work.

Det Ch Insp Paul Livingstone said they had found no trace of a job, few friends, and no evidence of her contact with partner agencies and local services.
"One line of inquiry that I now must consider is the possibility that Margaret may have come to some harm," he said
"Our search will continue from the house into the grounds around it.
"This is a natural progression in the inquiry to assist our investigation to find Margaret."

However, he stressed it was still a missing person investigation.
"Margaret's carers have said that they believe she has a private side to her life and that she may have friends that they are not aware of," he said.

Ms Fleming is described as about 5ft 5in tall, with collar-length black hair, brown eyes and has a heavy build.
When last seen, she was wearing a green tartan fleece or jumper, dark jeans or trousers, and dark Karrimor-type boots. She also had a satchel-type handbag.

It is believed Ms Fleming lived with her father in Port Glasgow before he died in October 1995.
She then lived with her grandparents and mother but moved in with carers in 1997, and has been estranged from her mother since then.

Officers from the Major Investigations Team are now assisting police at Greenock with the investigation.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-glasgow-west-38288920
 
This is a strange one:
Garden dug up of missing woman last seen in public in 1999

The garden of a woman reported missing in Inverclyde six weeks ago is to be excavated after it emerged she was last seen in public 17 years ago.
Police Scotland said that apart from her carers, the last independent sighting of Margaret Fleming was on 17 December 1999 at a family gathering.
The 36-year-old was reported missing by her two carers from her home in Inverkip at about 17:40 on 28 October.

Officers want to hear from anyone who knew Ms Fleming from her college days.
Ms Fleming, who is believed to have learning difficulties, is thought to have attended James Watt College in Greenock between 1996 and 1998.
Police said she had few contactable friends or family and checks on education, employment, health and welfare records had shown no trace of her.

An ongoing search of her house in Main Road will now extend into the garden, which police say will be extensive and will involve some excavation work.

Det Ch Insp Paul Livingstone said they had found no trace of a job, few friends, and no evidence of her contact with partner agencies and local services.
"One line of inquiry that I now must consider is the possibility that Margaret may have come to some harm," he said
"Our search will continue from the house into the grounds around it.
"This is a natural progression in the inquiry to assist our investigation to find Margaret."

However, he stressed it was still a missing person investigation.
"Margaret's carers have said that they believe she has a private side to her life and that she may have friends that they are not aware of," he said.

Ms Fleming is described as about 5ft 5in tall, with collar-length black hair, brown eyes and has a heavy build.
When last seen, she was wearing a green tartan fleece or jumper, dark jeans or trousers, and dark Karrimor-type boots. She also had a satchel-type handbag.

It is believed Ms Fleming lived with her father in Port Glasgow before he died in October 1995.
She then lived with her grandparents and mother but moved in with carers in 1997, and has been estranged from her mother since then.

Officers from the Major Investigations Team are now assisting police at Greenock with the investigation.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-glasgow-west-38288920

More to come on this one no doubt. No other sightings apart from her 'carers' for 17 years & now they're digging up their garden..

Meanwhile, formerly missing for 10 years, now found. From July this year, the classic cement overshoes:

Reportedly a protection racket.

Russian banker immured in concrete, left to die in boiling sun

The body of a Russian banker has been fished out from the Moscow Canal trapped in concrete. Before being dumped into the water the man apparently died a painful death in the boiling heat of the sun. A local gang is suspected to be behind the crime.

The DNA test revealed that the victim was the chairman of the Kutuzovsky Bank, Oleg Novoselsky, who has been missing for over a decade, a police source told Life.ru.

The businessman was murdered by the infamous gang of Aslan Gagiev, over “a land dispute” in summer 2005, the sources added.

Back then, Novoselsky was kidnapped by the criminals who later immured him waste deep in a barrel with concrete.

He was then abandoned and spent over a week outside a country house in the boiling sun, the network reported.

“Novoselskiy died a long and painful death in a barrel that stood in the sun for a week. After that – on Aslan Gagiev’s order – the barrel was thrown into the Moskva Canal in the Dmitrovsky District (of Moscow Region), at the bottom of which it remained for about 10 years,” the police source said.

Aslan Gagiev was detained in Austria in January 2015 and remains under house arrest. Moscow has so far been unable to agree with Vienna his extradition to Russia.

Gagiev’s gang is suspected of over 60 murders committed in the early 2000s, almost all of which were contract killings of businessmen who refused to share their assets. Novoselsky reportedly had a land dispute with the gang.
 
More to come on this one no doubt. No other sightings apart from her 'carers' for 17 years & now they're digging up their garden..

Sounds like one of those cases where carers cover up the death so they can keep claiming benefits on behalf of the person, if so, surprised they weren't buggered before now with the level of reassessment in recent years.

There's probably a bad joke in here somewhere about Atos finding the corpse fit for work.
 
I'm just wondering why they are doing this after 17 years. Did they go around for 16 years thinking "She'll be back any minute now"?
 
I'm just wondering why they are doing this after 17 years. Did they go around for 16 years thinking "She'll be back any minute now"?
No, they reported her missing in October this year.

But others (family, friends?) hadn't seen her for 17 years. This what is weird.
 
A baffling case until more details come out.
 
The case gets stranger
Margaret Fleming mystery: Close pal of carer couple says she never met missing woman at their house
Rosemary Connelly often visited the house Margaret is understood to have shared with Edward Cairney and Avril Jones in Inverkip for 20 years but never saw her.
  • NEWS
    couple.jpg

    Edward Cairney and Avril Jones, main pic Rosemary Connelly, inset right, and Margaret Fleming, left (Photo: Daily Record)The couple became carers for vulnerable Margaret in 1997 after her father, who is understood to have been a friend of theirs, died.

    But Rosemary last night insisted she had never seen Margaret at their home – despite visiting many times over the years and going away with the couple sometimes.


    JS107315191.jpg

    Rosemary Connelly often visited Edward Cairney and Avril Jones at their home
    Rosemary said last night: “I never met her or seen her.

    “Margaret didn’t go on the holidays with us. I never saw her at the house. When we went to their house we sat in the living room.

    “There could have been someone else upstairs, I don’t know.

    “I did hear Avril mention Margaret once because she hadn’t went to college or something.”

    Rosemary added: “Avril and Edward are two of the nicest, kindest people you could ever meet. I don’t believe anything sinister has gone on.

    “But I was shocked when I read about the police search.”

    Fears missing woman has come to harm as police dig up garden

    Margaret was 19 when she was last seen in public on December 17, 1999.

    She was reported missing on October 28.

    But, in a bizarre twist, detectives revealed on Monday that her carers are the only people known to have seen her alive in 17 years.

    Margaret is understood to have lost contact with her family after moving in with them.

    The couple are believed to be assisting officers with their inquiries.

    Last night, Rosemary, who first met Avril and Edward in the late 1980s, said that during their years of friendship, she wasn’t even aware if Margaret lived with the couple.


    search.jpg

    Missing Margaret Fleming and police hunting for clues to her whereabouts (Photo: Getty)
    Rosemary and her late husband were living in Inverkip when Avril and Edward took over a local hotel.

    She said: “Edward had a lot of money. He had properties and businesses.

    “He also was very into diving.

    “They took over the local hotel and my husband and I lived in the area so we would sometimes go for a drink and that’s how we met them.”

    Rosemary recalls that the couple’s garden at their sea-facing cottage was beautifully tended.

    The garden now forms part of an area under examination by police in the hunt for Margaret.

    Rosemary said: “They would often ask us to go out for dinner or round for drinks in their lovely garden which was like an orchard.

    “Avril was a very keen gardener and her garden and plants were beautiful.

    “She even had a spare room in her house she would use for potting plants. She doesn’t keep well now so the house has fallen into disrepair a bit.


    JS107318694.jpg

    Police bring a digger in to help with their search (Photo: Getty)
    “Edward was always asking us to go on holiday with them – and as we couldn’t always afford it, they sometimes paid.

    “They always took the car on holidays and Eddie would ask me along and say there was spare seats in the back.

    “We would go off on holidays with them for three and four weeks to places I had never dreamed of going.

    “Once, on holiday, he asked if we fancied going away again but this time to Tenerife for Christmas. I said I didn’t like flying.

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“He turned to Avril, who he always called Miss Jones and said, ‘Miss Jones, we had better think of plan B’ then asked me how I felt about boats.

“That’s how they were. They were kind.”

Air support, divers, dogs and search specialists have all been involved in the hunt for Margaret.

Police officers stood guard yesterday at the entrance to the couple’s cottage as forensics teams worked near a white tent which had been pitched in the garden.


JS107315198.jpg

Officers search the garden of a house where Margaret Fleming is understood to have lived (Photo: Getty)
A metal barrier erected to screen the property from drivers on the nearby A78 remained in place.

Officers are understood to be looking through the house for any documents, clothes or personal items which could help solve the mystery.

Police said work in the garden would be extensive and would involve some excavation. A JCB digger arrived on site later in the day.

Edward and Avril have told police Margaret went missing from home at about 5.20pm on October 28.

Officers have been working since to shed light on her history, looking into her education and trying to find any employers or contacts with the NHS or social services.

But they have found nothing since 1999.

It is understood Margaret lived with her father Frederick Fleming in Port Glasgow until he died in October 1995.

She then stayed with her grandparents and mother Margaret before moving in with Edward and Avril in 1997.

Detectives have spoken to members of Margaret’s family and want to hear from anyone who can tell them more about her.


JS107315126.jpg

Police forensic officers begin excavating a garden in Inverkip (Photo: Getty)
Detective Chief Inspector Paul Livingstone, who is leading the investigation into her disappearance, previously said: “Apart from her carers, the last independent sighting of Margaret was in 1999.

“This, along with facts such as having no trace of a job, few friends that are contactable and no evidence of her contact with partner agencies and local services, has led me to become very concerned for her whereabouts and wellbeing.

“One line of inquiry I now must consider is the possibility that Margaret may have come to some harm.

“It’s important that we keep an open mind to all lines of inquiry, but the distinct lack of information about Margaret is concerning.”

Police would not confirm last night if benefits from the Department for Work and Pensions had been paid into Margaret Fleming’s account until recently.

A spokeswoman said: “We have been encouraged by the response to our appeal yesterday and we are following up a number of lines of inquiry.

“Officers remain at the house continuing with the search and inquiries are continuing.”

http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/scottish-news/margaret-fleming-mystery-close-pal-9453145
 
Missing woman Margaret Fleming's carer shared seven Facebook appeals about other people who have vanished
In a two-month spell in early 2013, Avril Jones endorsed a number of social media campaigns to trace people who had gone missing.
A senior detective said earlier this week that an investigation into Margaret’s life had revealed no sightings of her by anyone except Avril and Edward since 1999.

Detective Chief Inspector Paul Livingstone admitted he feared Margaret, 36, “may have come
to some harm”. Police are still treating the case as a missing persons inquiry.

Avril and Edward, of Inverkip, started caring for Margaret, who has learning difficulties, in 1997.


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One of the appeals shared
But a close friend of Avril, Rosemary Connelly, revealed in the Record yesterday that she never once saw the young woman on her frequent visits to Avril’s home.

Rosemary said she only heard Margaret’s name mentioned once.

Fears missing woman has come to harm as police dig up garden
Margaret is thought to have lived with her dad in Port Glasgow before he died in October 1995.

She then lived with her grandparents and her mother, but has been estranged from her mum since she moved in with Avril and Edward.

Margaret went to James Watt College in Greenock between 1996 and 1998 and police are keen to speak to anyone who remembers her from then.

The missing woman was seen at a family event on December 17, 1999. Mr Livingstone said this week that there had been no “independent sightings” of her since that year.


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Another appeal shared
He went on: “This, along with facts such as having no trace of a job, few friends that are contactable and no evidence of her contact with partner agencies and local services, has led me to become very concerned for her whereabouts and wellbeing.

“One line of inquiry that I now must consider is the possibility that Margaret may have come to some harm.

“It is important that we keep an open mind to all lines of inquiry, but the distinct lack of information about Margaret is concerning.”

Police have refused to confirm if benefits had been paid into Margaret’s account until recently.

Margaret is described as 5ft 5in, with a heavy build, collar-length black hair and brown eyes.

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When she was reported missing in October, she was described as wearing a green tartan fleece or jumper, dark or trousers and dark Karrimor boots.

She was said to be carrying a satchel-like handbag.

Edward and Avril are understood to be helping police with their inquiries.

Meanwhile, a top detective working on the case yesterday said he was “encouraged” by the response to a public appeal.

Detective Chief Inspector Paul Livingstone said a number of people who knew or recognised Margaret had contacted police recently.


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Officers digging up the garden
He is now keen to hear from anyone who has ever been to the Inverkip cottage.

He said: “I am heartened by the encouraging response from the appeal for information and we have had a number of people phoning the team to say they remember or recognise Margaret.

"We also had a few people saying that they had visited the house that she is believed to stay at with her carers in Inverkip.

"I’m keen to speak to anyone else who has visited the home, whether socially or for business purposes as they may have seen or heard something that could help with the investigation.

“That could be someone making deliveries such as for shopping or takeaway food or perhaps doing building work on the premises. I’m really keen for anyone to get in touch.

Murder victim Mary Logie's bank account showed over £3000 in withdrawals in weeks leading up to her death
Yesterday uniformed officers were handing out leaflets to local residents and businesses in the Inverkip and Port Glasgow areas.

DCI Livingstone said: “Officers will continue to work to bottom these out as part of the investigation to piece together more detail to Margaret’s background.

“We also have officers who will be visible in the local Inverclyde area, delivering leaflets with Margaret’s image and engaging with more local people to see if they remember anything.

“Officers continue to search a house and grounds in Inverkip, as well as searching nearby areas.

“I would continue to ask anyone who may have any piece of information that may help, however small, to get in touch with the investigation team based at Helen Street Police Office, Govan on 101.”

http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/scottish-news/missing-woman-margaret-flemings-carer-9460110
 
Vanished Margaret Fleming only reported missing after benefits officials went to carers' home to see her
The Record understands that benefits officials had been paying thousands in benefits to vulnerable Margaret for a number of years.

JS107464885-1.jpg

The home where Margaret was said to live
Parts of the house have been demolished and sections of the garden dug up. A local resident said police had been stunned by the mess and squalor they found in the house, with one officer calling it “vomit-inducing”.

A source told us: “The missing person inquiry was initiated by the DWP.

“There have been benefits paid to Margaret Fleming for a number of years.

“An application was then received for new benefits, and this prompted a visit to the house at Inverkip from DWP officials.

Police dig up garden at home of missing Inverkip woman who hasn't been seen by anyone bar her carers for 17 years
“It could not be established by DWP officials where Margaret was, and whether she lived at the house where she was meant to be staying. That was when Police Scotland were called in.

“It was around this time that she was declared missing by her carers.

“Since 1999, when Margaret was last seen by anyone other than her carers, she has received benefits worth thousands of pounds.

“With housing benefit, carers allowance and disability living allowance, the amount of benefits received could be in excess of £300 a week.”


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Margaret Fleming
Edward, 75, and Avril, 56, became carers for Margaret in 1997. But a close friend of Avril told the Record this week that she visited the house often and never saw Margaret once.

Rosemary Connelly said: “I never met her. I never saw her at the house.

“We sat in the living room. There could have been someone else upstairs. I don’t know.”

Rosemary also went on holidays with Edward and Avril but Margaret never joined them on the trips.

Detective Chief Inspector Paul Livingstone, leading the search for Margaret, has admitted he is concerned about her wellbeing.

Fears missing woman has come to harm as police dig up garden
He said earlier this week that he was keeping an open mind, but admitted: “One line of inquiry I now must consider is the possibility that she may have come to some harm.”

Major police activity continues at Edward and Avril’s home, and shocking pictures of the state of the property have emerged.

The house looks rundown and strewn with rubbish, and officers working inside have beem seen wearing face masks.

A local source said: “The police were taken aback by the state of the place when they began the search.


JS107318694.jpg

Police bring a digger in to help with their search (Photo: Getty)
“There were rooms piled high with rubbish, from floor to ceiling.

“It was in a shocking state – vomit-inducing is how one officer described it to me. The building and garden are completely run down, but it was the rubbish lying around that really shocked people.”

The Department for Work and Pensions refused to give details about any benefits paid to anyone at the house.

A spokeswoman said: “As this is a police matter, we are unable to provide a comment. All
queries should be directed to Police Scotland.”

Police declined to comment on the DWP’s involvement.

http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/scottish-news/vanished-margaret-fleming-only-reported-9466357
 
This is not looking good for Margaret. With the news from the DWP, no doubt many people are now putting 2 and 2 together... :(
 
New appeal over missing Margaret Fleming 17 years on

Police searching for missing Margaret Fleming have made a fresh appeal for information exactly 17 years since she was last seen in public.
The 36-year-old, from Inverkip in Inverclyde, was reported missing by her two carers on 28 October.

The last independent sighting of her was on 17 December 1999.

Specialist teams have been searching the house and garden where Ms Fleming lived with her carers Edward Cairney, 75, and Avril Jones, 56.
It is believed they are looking for any documentation, clothing or personal items which could help find her.

Officers were also continuing to make inquiries in the wider Inverclyde area.
Det Ch Insp Paul Livingstone, the senior investigating officer, said: "Today, Saturday 17 December, marks 17 years to the day that Margaret was seen at a family gathering.
"This is the only independent sighting we have of Margaret so far, and I would like to re-appeal to people in the local community of Inverkip and beyond for their help with our inquiries.
"A priority for the inquiry team is to establish Margaret's movements and lifestyle between 1999 and when she was reported missing on Friday 28 October by her carers."

He added: "We have had an encouraging response to our previous appeals and I would like to thank everyone who has taken the time to come forward with information.
"If Margaret is reading this, I would ask her to get in touch with police. She is not is any trouble, we just want to ensure she is safe and well."

Ms Fleming, who is believed to have learning difficulties, is thought to have attended James Watt College in Greenock between 1996 and 1998.
Police officers had gone to Ms Fleming's house on 28 October about a social work issue. Her carers said she had left that day. They later reported her missing.

It is believed Ms Fleming lived with her father in Port Glasgow before he died in October 1995.
She then lived with her grandparents and mother but moved in with the carers in 1997.
She is thought to have been estranged from her mother since then.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-glasgow-west-38343790

The photos show the police have done a thorough job of digging up the garden...
 
Soil samples from garden of missing Margaret Fleming and carers checked for human DNA
A police source said that the force are carrying out tests on soil to establish whether there are any human remains in the ground at the Inverkip home.
They have been stunned by the mess and squalor in the house. A local source said one officer had described it as “vomit-inducing”.

Margaret’s whereabouts remain a mystery. Family members have told detectives they have not seen her in 17 years.

Police have admitted they fear she “may have come to some harm” but the case remains a missing persons investigation.


JS107390048.jpg

Officers digging up the garden
And the officer in charge, Detective Chief Inspector Paul Livingstone, said: “There is no evidence of any crime having been committed and Margaret’s carers are still assisting us with our inquiries.

“They would ask Margaret who she was spending time with and she would say, ‘That’s private.’

“I have no evidence to contradict what the carers are telling us. There are people who do keep aspects of their lives private.

Missing woman Margaret Fleming's carer shared seven Facebook appeals about other people who have vanished
“The search continues but we haven’t found anything in the garden so far. We’re keeping an open mind.”

We revealed yesterday that the missing persons inquiry was sparked by a new claim for benefits for Margaret, who has learning difficulties.

Officials from the Department for Work and Pensions visited her home to interview her and called in police when they could not get in touch with her.

Police visited the house with social workers after issues were raised in connection with the payment of benefits.


JS107241167-1.jpg

DCI Paul Livingston
Officers then discovered Margaret had not been seen by anyone at the property other
than her carers since 1999.

Mr Livingstone said: “We haven’t heard from anyone who has actually spoken to Margaret in that time, but we remain open to the possibility that Margaret could have been in another room.”

We understand the DWP have paid thousands of pounds in benefits to Margaret over the years.

Margaret Fleming mystery: Close pal of carer couple says she never met missing woman at their house
Edward, 75, and Avril, 56, helped Margaret deal with her money.

Mr Livingstone said: “We know she did have bank cards, but her carers assisted in the managing of her finances.”

The couple are in temporary accommodation while the search at their home continues.

They became Margaret’s carers in 1997 after her solicitor dad died, but their friends and neighbours say they never saw her at the house.

A police spokeswoman said the force could not comment on specifics of the search at Seacroft Cottage. She said only: “Inquiries are continuing.”

http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/scottish-news/soil-samples-garden-missing-margaret-9472353
 
Cops searching for clues at home of missing Margaret Fleming expect probe to last for two months
Police began searching land around carers Edward Cairney and Avril Jones’s property in mid-December and they say fingertip search will last another three weeks.

BYSALLY HIND
  • 06:00, 6 JAN 2017
NEWS
search.jpg

Missing Margaret Fleming and police hunting for clues to her whereabouts (Photo: Getty)

Detectives expect the painstaking search of missing Margaret Fleming’s house to last two months.

Police were still carrying out a fingertip search at the home of the vulnerable 37-year-old from Inverkip, Renfrewshire, yesterday.
She was reported missing in October by her carers but has not been seen by anyone other than them for 17 years.

Police began searching land around carers Edward Cairney and Avril Jones’s property in mid-December.

A pit dug in the garden appeared to be the focus of the search but nothing has been found to give them a clue to her whereabouts.

Revealed: Missing woman Margaret Fleming has not visited a GP in 17 years
Police yesterday said the forensic work was set to last at least three more weeks. A spokeswoman said: “The house is still being searched and probably will be for a few weeks yet.”

Margaret was reported missing after benefits officials visited the cottage. There was no trace of her having lived there, despite benefits being claimed in her name for years.

Edward, 75, and Avril, 56 have moved out of their cottage while it is searched.

http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/scottish-news/cops-searching-home-missing-woman-9570365
 
Carer of missing Margaret Fleming moves back into home seized by police after six month search
Avril Jones and partner Edward Cairney were asked to leave the house as detectives launched a search of the property for evidence of the missing woman.

  • NORMAN SILVESTER
    • 06:00, 28 MAY 2017
    NEWS

    carer.jpg

    Carer Avril Jones has been allowed to move back into the house seized by police looking for missing Margaret Fleming (Photo: Sunday Mail)
    • missing person last October by Avril Jones, 56, and her partner Edward Cairney, 75.


      Police then discovered that the two carers were the only people to have seen Margaret since a family gathering in December 1999.

      Cairney and Jones were asked to leave the five-bedroom house, where they lived with Margaret, as detectives launched a search of the property for evidence of the missing woman.

      Excavation work was also carried out on the huge back garden by forensic experts, using a mechanical digger.

      The Sunday Mail can reveal that Jones secretly returned to her bungalow two weeks ago, after police officially ended their six-month search.

      There was no sign of retired hotelier Cairney.

      Margaret was only reported missing when police visited the house in Inverkip, near Greenock, with Department for Work and Pension officials to speak to her about a benefits claim.


      JS120839734.jpg

      The property where Avril Jones has returned to following the completion of a police search
      Detectives hunting for missing Margaret Fleming follow leads all the way to America
    Officers set up an incident caravan at the house, which they used until the end of April, before moving back in for a day earlier this month to carry out further soil tests.

    One local resident said: “The police left at the end of last month and Avril moved back about two weeks ago.

    “We do not see much of her and she seems to use taxis to get about.

    “Any time we have seen her, she has been on walking sticks. She sometimes lets the dog out the back.”

    After they were asked to move out in November, the couple lived in temporary accommodation in nearby Port Glasgow.

    When police raided the house, they found it in a state of disrepair and filled with junk and clutter.


    JS118101255.jpg

    Margaret Fleming went missing from her home and has not been seen by anyone apart from her carers for 17 years.
    Cops return to home of missing Margaret Fleming days after detectives say leads have taken them as far as US
Police are refusing to rule out the possibility that something “sinister” happened to Margaret, though it is still being treated as a missing person inquiry.

Soil samples from the garden have been sent to a police lab to check for human DNA.

Officers have tried to contact every Margaret Fleming across the UK and the Channel Islands.

Helicopter teams, divers and dog units have combed the wider area, which lies on the Inverclyde coastline, without success.

Margaret lived with her father Frederick in Port Glasgow until his death in 1995. She then lived with her grandparents and mum Margaret until moving in with her carers in 1997.

Police have found no trace of her having a job or friends, and no evidence of her in contact with other agencies or local services.

They believe she has not visited a doctor for 17 years.

A spokeswoman yesterday confirmed the property had been handed back to its owners.

She added: “We have concluded inquiries at the house and have stood down from the property.

“However, inquiries into the disappearance are still ongoing.”

READ MORE
Top News Stories Today

http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/carer-missing-women-moves-back-10515044
 
If it was the carers they have had 17 years to hide her well, who was signing for her welfare checks?
The carers were signing for welfare cheques. I'm amazed they haven't been accused of murder yet.
Oh yeah...and what happened to the family in all of this?
 
The carers were signing for welfare cheques. I'm amazed they haven't been accused of murder yet.
Oh yeah...and what happened to the family in all of this?

Did they have some power of attorney or arrangement with DWP?

In the RoI a person can nominate someone to collect their pension/benefit but its supposed to be reviewed on a regular basis.
 
Did they have some power of attorney or arrangement with DWP?

In the RoI a person can nominate someone to collect their pension/benefit but its supposed to be reviewed on a regular basis.
No idea. [shrugs]
 
Her 'carers' must be either unbelievably clever, or unbelievably lucky, to still be at liberty?
 
It's a really bizarre case to be sure. I don't think they've been charged with claiming benefits fraudulently in the absence of a body & no date of disappearance, & now compulsory repair or demolition. I didn't know councils could step in to enforce this on a detached freehold house.
 
I wonder at what length the search has gone.
What about phone records or internet activities?
May also be she wanted to disappear.
 
I wonder at what length the search has gone.
What about phone records or internet activities?
May also be she wanted to disappear.

She was a woman with learning difficulties. I doubt she was on the internet or had mobile phones or as you mention, there would be records. Without looking up the details, she hasn't been seen or heard of for something like 17 years by anyone apart from [they claim] her 'carers' & during this time they've been claiming benefits for her. So far the police have spent the past few months digging up the house's grounds & found nothing.
 
Well then it seems the carers know something.
Maybe they should look at the septic tank as well.
I read one case where the victim was cut up small enough and was dumped into one.
 
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I don't think their story has been publicised. I assume it's along the lines of "she went out yesterday & we haven't seen or heard from her since" or something similar. I'd be surprised if the police haven't looked in the septic tank during the excavation of the grounds. Without finding remains there's presumably not much they can do.
 
I don't think their story has been publicised. I assume it's along the lines of "she went out yesterday & we haven't seen or heard from her since" or something similar. I'd be surprised if the police haven't looked in the septic tank during the excavation of the grounds. Without finding remains there's presumably not much they can do.
But they can pay back every penny of the benefits and if they've spent it, stay in jail until they've worked it off at minimum wage, which would be fair.
 
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