Police renew appeal to find ex-miner who vanished 20 years ago: 53-year-old’s disappearance sparked murder probe but detectives failed to find his body
- Edward Donnelly disappeared from his home in County Durham in 2002
- A manhunt was launched but police failed to find the body of the former miner
- Five people were arrested in 2005 and police suspect community know more
- Durham Constabulary appealing for people to come forward with information
An appeal to find a miner who disappeared 20 years ago has been renewed by Durham Police.
Edward Donnelly vanished without a trace from his home in Sacriston, County Durham, in 2002, and police believe he was murdered.
But despite extensive enquiries no-one has ever been convicted in connection with his death and his body has never been recovered.
Mr Donnelly shared a home with his sister in Fynway, Sacriston and she reported him missing on March 25, 2002.
The 53-year-old former miner went missing in 2002 and police believe that he was murdered. Despite extensive searches, his body has never been found
The former miner lived with his sister, who reported him missing. Police believe that the community know more about what happened to him
The 53-year-old was last seen in Lloyds Bank, in Sacriston that morning.
Further sightings were reported of him walking alone beside the A167 at Plasworth, near the Red Lion pub that day.
At the time of his disappearance, his sister said she had returned home later that day to find his keys and other documents posted through the letterbox.
Known to his family and friends as Eddie, Mr Donnelly enjoyed reading and walking in the Durham and Chester-le-Street area.
A former mineworker at Sacriston Pit, he was around 5ft 8in, pale and with mousey brown hair.
Despite extensive searches at locations in the area, including several abandoned mineworkings and pit shafts, officers were unable at that time to locate Edward’s body and what began as a missing person’s inquiry became a murder investigation.
Extensive searches were carried out at the time of Mr Donnelly’s disappearance as the missing person investigation became a murder investigation
Mr Donnelly was a keen reader and enjoyed walking around County Durham, including in the Chester-le-street area
Despite extensive and exhaustive enquiries over the years, no-one was ever convicted in connection with his death and his body has not been recovered
In 2005, five people were arrested in connection with the inquiry, but all were released without charge.
However, detectives say they believe that there are members of the community who hold information which could bring the case to a close and are appealing for witnesses to come forward.
Detective Superintendent Lee Gosling, from Durham Constabulary, said: ‘We remain convinced that someone out there knows what happened to Edward Donnelly and we would appeal to them to come forward so we can finally get justice for his family after all these years.
‘Detectives are now speaking to a number of people connected with the case and our major crime team are re-examining evidence which was collated at the time.’
Det Supt Gosling added: ‘Eddie Donnelly was a quiet and unassuming man and we have never given up on finding him.
‘We have long held the belief that there are people in the village who know what happened to him and know who was involved.
‘We would ask anyone with information to call us in confidence as a matter of urgency so that Eddie’s family and friends can have the closure they deserve.’
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