Police drain fishing lake near York in search for Claudia Lawrence who went missing 12 years ago
Watch Jon Hill's report.
Police investigating the disappearance of Claudia Lawrence have drained a fishing lake at Sand Hutton, near York.
Detectives began their search operation at the gravel pits, which are now believed to be used as fishing ponds, on Tuesday 24 August. Earlier this week, officers said they expected to remain at the scene for a number of days.
In a statement on Thursday 2 September, North Yorkshire Police confirmed the pond had been drained as part of the investigation into Claudia Lawrence's disappearance.
A spokesperson said:
Ms Lawrence, who worked as a chef at the University of York, went missing more than a decade ago. She was last seen on March 18 2009, and North Yorkshire Police has conducted two investigations and questioned nine people in relation to her disappearance and suspected murder, but no charges have ever been brought.
The timeline of the 12-year hunt for missing Claudia Lawrence
March 18 2009
March 18 2009
Ms Lawrence was last seen at around 3.05pm walking towards her home.
Ms Lawrence spoke to her mum, Joan, and dad, Peter, that evening over the telephone. They both said she was in good spirits.
March 19 2009
March 19 2009
Ms Lawrence fails to turn up to her 6am shift. In the evening, she also doesn't attend the Nags Head pub, where she had previously agreed to meet her friend.
April 24 2009
April 24 2009
Detectives say that Ms Lawrence’s disappearance is being treated as a suspected murder investigation. A £10,000 reward is offered for information that could lead to the conviction of those responsible.
May 13 2014
May 13 2014
A 59-year-old man is arrested on suspicion of murder. He is released on police bail and eventually released without charge six months later.
March 19 2014
March 19 2014
Five years on from Ms Lawrence’s disappearance, officers searching her home discover the fingerprints of people who have still not come forward to the investigation.
March 23 2015
March 23 2015
A man in his 50s is arrested on suspicion of murdering Ms Lawrence and released on police bail the following day.
April 22 2015
April 22 2015
Three more men, all in their 50s and from the York area, are arrested on suspicion of murder and are released on bail.
September 17 2015
September 17 2015
A file of evidence on four men arrested on suspicion of murder is sent by North Yorkshire Police to the Crown Prosecution service (CPS) so it can consider whether to bring charges. The CPS decides the men won't be charged.
January 17 2017
January 17 2017
Mr Lawrence says he is “hugely depressed and disappointed” as the investigation into his daughter’s disappearance is scaled down.
July 31 2019
July 31 2019
The Guardianship (Missing Persons) Bill, also known as Claudia’s Law, came into force. This followed years of campaigning by Mr Lawrence and allows relatives to take control of their missing loved ones’ financial matters.
August 24 2021
August 24 2021
A new search operation is announced at the gravel pits at Sand Hutton, about eight miles from York.
After search teams began scouring the area at Sand Hutton last week, the missing chef’s mother said: "I haven’t had time to really digest it and get myself together with it all, get together the possibilities, wondering where it’s all come from, wonder if it’s some information.
"Why Sand Hutton? I can’t think of any connection with Sand Hutton that Claudia would have."
Mrs Lawrence added: "At the end of the day, this is very personal and it’s about me and a daughter that I haven’t seen for 12 years, and every single day is a nightmare – this is an added one."
Speaking at the scene on Tuesday 24 August, where a road and a large area of woodland had been cordoned off and police could be seen searching the undergrowth with sticks, Detective Superintendent Wayne Fox said: “Whilst I cannot say at this stage how long the search may take, I do anticipate that a number of specialist officers and staff, including underwater search teams, and forensic experts, are likely to be at this location for a number of days.
"Whilst I am unable to disclose what brought us to this location, I would like to stress that the searches that you will see in coming days are just one of several active lines of inquiry which are currently being investigated and pursued by North Yorkshire Police major investigation team in our efforts to establish what happened to Claudia and to identify any person responsible for causing her harm."