Leah Croucher: Forensics in teen murder case could take weeks

Leah Croucher, 19, was last seen on CCTV on 15 February 2019 in Milton Keynes

Police investigating the murder of teenager Leah Croucher said forensic examinations at a house where human remains were found could take weeks.

On Wednesday, police said unidentified remains and a rucksack and personal items belonging to the 19-year-old had been found at a Milton Keynes property.

A post-mortem examination is due to take place on Friday but may "take some time", Thames Valley Police said.

Meanwhile, Miss Croucher's parents visited the house on Thursday evening.

Leah Croucher's father John, mother Claire and sister Jade looked at flowers outside the house

They arrived in a police vehicle just before 20:00 BST and were driven behind the cordon surrounding the property, on Loxbeare Drive in Furzton.

They reappeared some minutes later and laid flowers at a nearby memorial, made up of bouquets, teddy bears and candles left by members of the public.

A note was left outside the house by Miss Croucher's parents

The teenager was last seen on CCTV in the Buckinghamshire city on Friday, 15 February 2019.

Police began searching the home on Monday evening, following a tip-off phone call from a member of the public.

It was there they discovered a number of Miss Croucher's items, along with human remains.

Forensic examinations at the scene may last "several weeks", the force said, and as a result there would continue to be a police presence both at the house and in the area.

It would also "take some time" to formally identify the remains, police said.

A message left on the flowers laid by Miss Croucher's parents said they would "cherish her memories forever".

It said: "Our darkest fears have come true, we only need to be apart a little longer. We have so missed you for so long already.

"The future looks so bleak now we know we will never see your smile or hear your laughter again. We will cherish your memories forever."

A handwritten message signed from "Nan and Grandad" was also tied to a bunch of yellow roses and left outside the property by a group of mourners.

It read: "Our darling, we will never stop seeking answers. Will love and miss you always."

A note signed from "Nan and Grandad" was left outside the property

A police spokesman said Monday was the first time they had been alerted to the property, but it had been previously "visited as part of our house-to-house inquiries as part of the investigation".

"There was no response at the property and as such leaflets would have been dropped through the letterbox," the force said.

More than 4,000 homes have been visited and 1,200 hours of CCTV footage reviewed since Miss Croucher's disappearance on her way to work at a finance company three years ago.

Det Ch Supt Ian Hunter asked people to remain respectful of Miss Croucher's family and thanked the local community for their "support and patience" as the investigation continued.

"We are absolutely committed to finding out what has happened to Leah," he said.

Flowers have been left near to where the search is taking place

He made a "renewed and specific appeal" to anyone who may have been in the area of Loxbeare Drive on or around the day Miss Croucher went missing.

He said even with the passage of time "we remain hopeful that somebody may have a crucial piece of information".

"No matter how insignificant you believe any information you may have will be, please contact us," he said.

The property is less than half-a-mile (0.8km) from where Miss Croucher was last seen in Buzzacott Lane, Furzton, walking in the direction of Loxbeare Drive and Chaffron Way.

• Human remains found in missing teen murder probe

• The quiet teenager who vanished on her way to work

Forensics officers continue to work at the house where human remains were found

Thames Valley Police said detectives were likely to be at the scene "for some time"

Tara Maher, 51, who lives nearby, said she saw the teenager most days, including on the day she went missing, just after 08:00 GMT.

"It was no different that day - the 15th. We didn't say hello, it was more of an acknowledgment, just a nod."

She gave a statement to police at the time she disappeared and helped with the community effort to find her, because she "did not want her to be forgotten".

Tara Maher said she used to see Leah Croucher most days as she walked to work

"This has come as such a shock. It's a nice area. It hits home when it is on your doorstep," she said.

Ms Maher, who works at a local shop, said customers were usually jovial, but when the news came through on Wednesday "the whole mood changed", becoming "very sombre".

Bunches of flowers were left at the scene on Thursday with messages

Loxbeare Drive runs south from the western tip of Furzton Lake in the south-west of the Buckinghamshire city

Iain Stewart, Conservative MP for Milton Keynes South, said it was "extremely upsetting to learn of the developments" in the case.

He said he was in contact with police about the situation.

"My thoughts and prayers will continue to be with Leah's loved ones at this difficult time," he said.

A police tent has been erected outside a house on Loxbeare Drive

Forensics officers have been seen taking specialist equipment into the house

Leah Croucher: A timeline

CCTV footage showed the last confirmed sighting of Leah Croucher walking to work on the day she disappeared

• 14 February 2019: Leah Croucher is last seen by her parents at the family home in Quantock Crescent, Milton Keynes at 22:00 GMT

• 15 February 2019: CCTV footage showed her walking down Buzzacott Lane in Furzton at 08:16. She was thought to be going to her job at a finance company, but she never arrived

• April 2019: Thames Valley Police said three people had reported possible sightings of Leah near Furzton Lake between 09:30 and 11:15, on the day she went missing

• October 2019: A two-week search by Thames Valley Police of a lake and surrounding area at the Blue Lagoon nature reserve in Bletchley finds nothing

• February 2021: On the second anniversary of her disappearance, police said there had been "no significant leads" and the case was "bewildering and frustrating"

• October 2022: Police open a murder investigation after unidentified human remains and a rucksack and personal possessions belonging to Leah are found at a property on Loxbeare Drive in Furzton