Missing Tony Williamson: 'Dad we love you, please come home'

ITV Granada Reports journalist Claire Hannah reports on the disappearance of Tony Williamson.

The family of a 62-year-old man who has been missing from home in Trafford for a month have revealed he has been suffering with a chronic health condition for the past year.

Anthony Williamson, known as Tony, vanished from Timperley on the morning of Tuesday 19 December.

The last sighting of him is CCTV footage of him walking down Greenway Road near the junction by Park Road around 11:12am.

He is described as 6ft 1in tall and was last seen wearing blue cargo pants, a blue Berghaus fleece, and a black coat. Tony did have some money with him and food, but no phone.

Since his disappearance, Greater Manchester Police have carried out a number of searches and inquiries, all which remain ongoing.

The community has also been helping in the search for Tony.

January 19 2024, marks exactly a month to the day Tony was last seen and is the day his family has made a fresh appeal for information.

His son Simon said: "We can't thank the public enough for those who have shared our social media posts with regard to our dad Tony and the messages of support we have received.

"Our dad worked for the NHS for 37 years as a podiatrist at Wythenshawe Hospital and in the local community.

"He took early retirement so he could spend more time with mum, but was still working part-time at his own practice, which he has had for 30 years.

"Dad has always considered the needs of others over his own, and many of his friends and patients often come to him for help and advice.

"Before dad fell ill, he was a fit and well man who was very sociable. He enjoyed playing golf and spending time with his family and friends.

"For the past 12 months, dad has been suffering from a chronic illness which has impacted his daily life massively and he has been in continuous pain.

"It's now got to the point where he feels there's no end in sight and he feels he is holding us back.

"We need to let him know this is NOT the case."

Simon asked anyone with any camera footage, either from dashcam, doorbell or CCTV of his dad , or anyone who believes they saw him between the hours of 11am and 6pm on Tuesday 19 December 2023, to come forward, especially in the Stretford, Timperley, Altrincham, Sale, Brooklands, and Northenden areas.

Tony has taken a small amount of money with him so would probably have called into a shop, so businesses in those areas are being asked for help too.

Fighting back tears, Simon continued: "We are desperate for him to come home as soon as possible as we are really concerned about his wellbeing, and not knowing where he is is a daily struggle.

"Dad, we love you, please come home."

Greater Manchester Police say despite continuous searches and enquiries since the report came into GMP, Tony remains missing to this date.

There have been no new reported sightings of Tony since when he was captured on CCTV footage walking down Greenway towards Park Road at 11.12am on the day he went missing.

Searches have encompassed a full breadth of areas around where Tony was last seen, as well as areas he is familiar with and known to go to, and GMP are continuing to put boots on the ground and deploy specialist resources to look for him.

Greater Manchester Police are asking anyone with any information about Tony's whereabouts to contact them on 101 or by using the report tool and LiveChat function on their website quoting log 1367 of 19/12/2023.

In an emergency, people are asked to call 999.

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