Missing Corrie: 'Police Had Been Searching The Wrong Area'

The mother of missing airman Corrie McKeague has said police had been searching the wrong area of the landfill in Milton, Cambridgeshire, for 10 weeks.

Writing on the 'Find Corrie' Facebook group, Nicola Urquhart wrote that the search has been going on for 20 weeks because police were first told that the waste had been emptied in a different location. 

"This has taken so long because initially the police were told where the rubbish from that night had been dumped. 

"After searching nothing was found, so they carried out the GPS tracking and tachograph analysis which showed they had been in the wrong area."

On the 5th June, Suffolk Police, who have been responsible for the investigation, informed the public that the search would have been extended further.

According to the police, the waste in the landfill site had moved as the work has progressed, and for this reason the search area had to be expanded.

However, they did not mention that they could have been scanning the wrong area:

"Throughout the search officers have been working to understand exactly where waste was deposited and how it may have been spread out during the process.

"This week police will be bulk-moving further material to allow the work to continue.

"This is being done to ensure all parts of the relevant area are covered following further detailed and specific work completed around the GPS positioning of the vehicle which brought the waste to the site.

"This has led to an expansion of the original search parameters as work continues to locate anything that may help the investigation into Corrie’s disappearance."

She adds that "mistakes have been made" but she is 'finding incredibly difficult to remain quiet'.

In her post, Nicola says police told her that the investigation would become a criminal one, if Corrie was not found in the landfill. 

She continues saying that "Corrie may never be found" but 'we are a long way of knowing a sound investigation had been carried out':

"I understand that Corrie may never be found. I am realistic and we will find a way to deal with that scenario but it would have to be knowing that a sound investigation had been carried out and there are no other lines of enquiry that could be followed. We are still a long way of that."

"Everyone deserves to know the police would thoroughly investigate if something happened to them."

Speaking to Forces News, Nicola said that the search of a landfill site for her son's body has been 'an emotional roller coaster':

A spokesperson for Suffolk Police said that they discovered that waste from the right time period was being found "at the edges of the area originally identified" only while the search was already in place:

“Police were advised where waste from the relevant time period had been deposited on the site and have been searching in this location.

"As part of work behind the scenes, officers asked if any further information was available to help pinpoint the exact location where waste from the specific bin lorry was deposited.

“While the search was progressing, officers became aware that waste dated from the right time period was being found at the edges of the area originally identified and the search was expanded.

"Data then confirmed that the bin lorry would have deposited the load slightly further to one side of the cell where officers were already searching. It is known that, once deposited, the waste will have been moved both through the process of deposition and natural movement and the search has been continued to ensure the entirety of the relevant area is searched.”

In response to Nicola's post, they also said nothing suggests "any criminal activity has been identified during the enquiry":

"This has been a comprehensive and thorough investigation, with police dealing with the facts of the case and officers working methodically through all of the possibilities.

"This work has been reviewed on a regular basis by external experts and other Constabularies, as well as within Suffolk Police, and we have worked closely with a number of partner agencies to do all we can to locate Mr McKeague."

Suffolk Police have previously been criticised by the public and former detectives for how they carried out the investigation.

The RAF serviceman, who was last seen after a night out in Bury St Edmunds in September 2016, has now been missing for ten months.