How did girl vanish into thin air while riding her bike 55 years ago & why does case remain unsolved?
LAST seen cycling to her brother-in-law’s home, April Fabb seemingly vanished into thin air in a matter of minutes.
The 13-year-old had set off from her home in Metton, Norfolk, to make the short, two mile journey to nearby Roughton.
PA:Press AssociationApril Fabb disappeared in April 1969[/caption]
Her blue and white bicycle was later found dumped in a field but there was no sign of April.
Tragically, the teen remains missing 55 years later in one of the UK’s most enduring mysteries.
The chilling case began on April 8, 1969, when April left home at around 1.40pm with a pack of cigarettes for her brother-in-law’s birthday, a handkerchief and some money in her saddlebag.
She met two pals briefly and was seen 20 minutes later cycling in the direction of Roughton.
Tragically, that was the last-ever sighting of April.
At 2.15pm – just seven minutes later – the schoolgirl’s bike was seen lying in a field by three Ordnance Survey workers.
Bizarrely, it had been hurled over a 6ft bank on the country lane where April was last seen.
Her saddlebag still contained the cigarettes, money and handkerchief.
After she failed to return home, the alarm was raised – sparking Norfolk Police’s biggest search in the history of the force.
Every police dog in the country was drafted in to help search for April and 1,971 statements were taken.
Police also made more than 400 house-to-house enquiries hoping to solve the puzzle but officers had no luck.
The only clue they found was a bloody handkerchief embroidered with the letter “A” that was later found to belong to a mum who had wiped her son’s grazed knee.
Passengers also reported seeing a teenage girl boarding a train to Norwich but officers had no idea if this was April.
Norfolk ConstabularyApril’s bike was discovered just seven minutes after she was last seen[/caption]
PA:Press AssociationSome believe serial killer Robert Black is behind April’s disappearance[/caption]
Her disappearance also sparked wild theories as sleuths and even psychics waded in but nothing concrete could help reunite the youngster with her heartbroken loved ones.
Chillingly, the probe has been linked to 20 other cases due to its baffling nature.
One of the longer-running theories is that serial killer Robert Black potentially murdered the teen.
There are a number of eerie similarities between April’s disappearance and the monster’s modus operandi.
Black was working as a delivery driver at the time – using Britain’s roads to abduct and murder children before moving onto another town.
He would take kids from small rural areas close to the main road so he could dump their bodies hundreds of miles away.
By 1994, Black’s kidnap, rape and murder of three girls was already known and the fiend was behind bars for life.
As the grisly details of his crimes emerged, he began to be linked to other unsolved cases.
Nine years after April vanished, 13-year-old Genette Tate was snatched while delivering newspapers.
In a chilling echo of April’s disappearance, Genette was cycling at the time in rural Aylesbeare, Devon.
Her school friends found the bike on its side in the road with a bundle of newspapers scattered across the tarmac.
After Black was convicted in 1994, police forces from all over the country – including Norfolk Constabulary – confirmed they planned to quiz the killer over unsolved cases.
Officers had been on the verge of charging Black with Genette’s murder at the time of his death in January 2016.
But due to a change in the Crown Prosecution Service’s policy in posthumous charging decisions, the case could no longer proceed.
BBCApril was last seen cycling to her brother-in-law’s home[/caption]
For April though, the answer is not as clear-cut as police have never found any evidence linking Black to Norfolk in 1969.
Other leads have also come to nothing – including a theory she may have been buried at construction works at the Bacton gas terminal.
Police searched the pipelines but nothing was ever found.
This was also true for a well that was excavated in 2010 after a landowner reported seeing black polythene sheeting at the bottom.
Her mum and dad died in 1998 and 2013, respectively, without ever discovering what happened to their daughter.
Tragically, they kept April’s bedroom the same as the day she vanished – right down to posters on the wall of her favourite band, Amen Corner.
Timeline of April's chilling disappearance
April 8, 1969, 1.40pm: April leaves her home in Metton, Norfolk, to ride the two miles to her sister’s home
She stops to chat to a couple of friends at a farm next to a field where donkeys were grazing
Just after 2pm: The teen is seen by a farm worker cycling in the direction of Roughton
2.15pm: April’s bike is discovered in a field just a few hundred yards from where she was last seen
10pm: Her parents report her missing after learning she never made it to her sister’s house
April 9/10: The search becomes one of the largest ever in Norfolk Police’s history as 1,971 statements taken and 419 house-to-house questionnaires completed.
April 11: April’s parents appeal for information and vow to leave the door unlocked and light on in case their missing daughter comes home.
1998: The schoolgirl’s dad passes away without ever discovering what happened to April
2010: Officers excavate a well near Metton after the landowner previously reported seeing black polythene sheeting at the bottom at the time of April’s disappearance.
2013: April’s mum dies with no closure
Norfolk Police are still appealing for information to solve the baffling case.
In a statement, the force said: “This case is one of the most high profile in Norfolk’s history and despite the passing of time it continues to be prominent in the public’s and the constabulary’s mind.
“Sadly April’s mother passed away not knowing what happened to April. Officers are determined to find closure for her remaining family and will continue to seek any new credible and relevant information that could unlock this mystery.”
Anyone with information can call 01953 42 3819 or email [email protected]
News Group Newspapers LtdApril’s parents died without ever knowing what happened to their daughter[/caption]
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