Bones found in Wisbech field do not belong to missing man Terry McSpadden, say police

Detectives say human remains found in a field are not those of a missing man who disappeared 18 years ago.

The bones were found by a member of the public in May close to where father-of-two Terry McSpadden was last seen in 2007.

Police had contacted the then-24-year-old's family to tell them about the discovery on Sunday 18 May at Lynn Road, Walton Highway, in Wisbech, on the Norfolk-Cambridgeshire border.

But following forensic examination and analysis, detectives said they had identified the remains - and confirmed they were not those of Mr McSpadden or 54-year-old Maris Ile, who was reported missing in 2024.

A spokesman for Norfolk police said inquiries were ongoing to locate the next of kin and while the death was being treated as unexplained, it was not thought to be suspicious.

A cordon put in place to protect the scene where the bones were found has now been lifted.

Terry McSpadden was last seen on March 2 2007 after spending the evening in the Locomotive pub in Wisbech, close to the Norfolk-Cambridgeshire border.

Cold case detectives launched a fresh appeal for information about his disappearance in February this year.

Mr McSpadden's body was never found and his hand-painted black mountain bike was never recovered.

A man was charged with his murder in 2011 but the case against him was dismissed in court.Last month, Helen Thrower, Mr McSpadden's mother, said she continued to hope for "some peace".

She said: "Me and other people whose family members are missing, we're hoping for some peace. Until we get some identification, we can't know."

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