Missing RAF Gunner Corrie McKeague Probe To Be 'Stood Down'

The search for missing airman Corrie McKeague will be handed over to a cold case squad, police have confirmed.

Mr McKeague was 23 when he was last seen walking through Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, in September 2016 after a night out.

The RAF man, who was based at Honington, Suffolk, was last seen on CCTV in the early hours of September 24, 2016, at 3.25am.

Suffolk Police have announced that the inquiry will be shelved; they said in a statement: 

"Detectives investigating the disappearance of Corrie McKeague have reached the point where there are no realistic lines of enquiry left to pursue.

"As the missing airman has not been found the case will remain open and move to the Major investigation cold case team.

"Any credible new information will continue to be followed up by officers.

Detective Superintendent Katie Elliott, Suffolk Constabulary: "All the evidence still points to Corrie having been in the bin"

Having been through all realistic possibilities in detail over the past 18 months since Corrie went missing in Bury St Edmunds on September 24, 2016, there is nothing to suggest any foul play or third party involvement.

Mr McKeague's father, Martin (49) told the paper he thought his son knew he was going to become a father which may have affected his mental state.

"I just can't help thinking this would have weighed on him heavily and he may have actually chosen to get in that bin that night knowing what would happen."

"It's as probable as anything else and it makes it no less heartbreaking."

Detective Superintendent Katie Elliott said: "It is extremely disappointing that we have not been able to find Corrie. I can only imagine the strain Corrie’s family have been under over the past 18 months and I thank them for their patience and understanding.

"Whilst the investigation has drawn to a natural conclusion we will continue to work with the family to provide answers to their questions and help them understand what may have happened.

"Since Corrie disappeared, police have been exploring all proportionate and relevant lines of enquiry.

"We have now reached a point where we are unable to make any further progress, and have gone as far as we realistically can with the information we have. If any new, credible and proportionate enquiries relating to Corrie’s disappearance emerge we will pursue them.”

Simon Megicks, Assistant Chief Constable: "We always keep an open mind"

Whilst Assistant Chief Constable Simon Megicks from Suffolk Constabulary added:

"Saddened as I am that we have not found Corrie, I have absolute confidence in the way the investigation was conducted.

"The major investigation team inquiry has been reviewed at various points by senior officers within the constabulary and external experts, including the East Midlands Special Operations Unit.

"The unit’s report concludes police have conducted a thorough and detailed investigation, and explored all reasonable lines of enquiry. It also endorses the primary hypothesis that Corrie ended up in the waste disposal process.”

Sergeant Vince Williams, Suffolk Constabulary: "We wanted to find an answer for the family, give them some closure"

Footage showed Corrie entering an area with rubbish bins behind shops, known as the 'horseshoe'. He has not been seen since.

£2 million has been spent on the investigation so far, and what happened to the RAF gunner remains a mystery.

Police believe Corrie may have climbed into a bin to sleep before being taken away by a refuse collection lorry, sparking two searches of a landfill site at Milton.

They spent 27 weeks trawling through 7,000 tonnes of rubbish, but nothing was found.

Two searches were conducted by police at a landfill site at Milton near Cambridge last year, with the first search lasting 20 weeks and the second lasting seven, concluding in December.

No trace of Mr McKeague was found.