New investigation over missing Swindon prostitute
Detectives in Wiltshire have begun a murder investigation following the disappearance of a woman nearly 20 years ago.
Sally Ann John was 23 when she went missing from her home town of Swindon. Today police said that following a review of evidence they were now treating the case as murder.
When she vanished back in 1995 her family were distraught. They knew that Sally had been working as a prostitute. They feared the worst.
At the time Sally's mother, Lesley John, told ITV News: "What are my worries now? That she has been harmed somewhere. Do you think she might have been taken by a client? I think so."
Today, back in the street in Swindon where she was last seen alive, the police said they want help from the public.
Detective Inspector Tim Corner said: "We are confident that people who think they have information will come forward."
Detectives say they are not linking the case to Christopher Halliwell, who is serving a life sentence for murdering nightclubber Sian O'Callaghan in 2002. Last week the house where he used to live was searched by forty specialist officers.
"We keep an open mind to every investigation we undertake, murder or otherwise. We are not connecting the two at the moment."
The detective also said that the appeal for information was not prompted by searches last week of a former home of Halliwell in Swindon by officers from Operation Mayan
Mr Corner said Miss John was last seen on the night of September 8 1995 in the Aylesbury Street and Station Road area of Swindon.
He said the force had originally run a high-profile missing person inquiry, which ran until December 1995, but Miss John was never found.
"This reinvestigation was initiated following a review of the original investigation and significant new lines of inquiry were established," he said.
"This has been reclassified as a murder investigation as detectives believe it is likely that Sally was murdered following her disappearance in 1995."
Miss John, who grew up in Swindon, was living in Kimmeridge Close in Nythe at the time of her disappearance.
"Sally maintained a good relationship with her family - in particular her mother, Lesley John, and had a circle of friends in the town," Mr Corner said.
"Although the original missing person investigation concluded in 1995, Sally has remained a missing person on the Wiltshire Police database.
"As part of this reinvestigation, Wiltshire Police will be revisiting witnesses and evidence from the original investigation.
"Wiltshire Police have been in contact with Sally's family and will be supporting them throughout this process.
"I met with Sally's parents and informed them that this is being reinvestigated and they welcomed the reinvestigation.
"The John family need closure into the disappearance of their daughter. There can be nothing worse for a parent than to lose a daughter under these circumstances and not know what has actually happened to them."