Found Safe UK - Antonino Coppola, 23, from Richmond, Surrey, missing from Bow, East London, 16 Sep 2021

[MsMiniSleuth]

I wish we had more information on this case. These are the questions I would like to ask:

1. The friend who AC was with that morning, was he a longstanding friend who knew him well, or just a more casual acquaintance.

2. How had AC seemed that morning as they set off, his usual self or a little different.

3. When did AC start to mention feeling ill: before getting on train, during journey repeatedly, or just as they neared Bow Road.

4. Had AC said anything perhaps to the effect that he had a hangover, or thought he might have food poisoning.

5. Why were they moving right from one side of London to another, and who else was to be living there.

6. How had AC felt about the move.

7. Did AC have a partner, or gone through a recent breakup.

8. How was he feeling about taking on this new job.

9. If he had previously been an assistant manager, why take a step down to a waiter. Had he found his previous post too stressful, or had he taken this new job simply because he needed the money.

10. What was his lifestyle like and what kind of circles did he mix in.

 

[Gia86]

I wish we had more information on this case. These are the questions I would like to ask:

1. The friend who AC was with that morning, was he a longstanding friend who knew him well, or just a more casual acquaintance.

2. How had AC seemed that morning as they set off, his usual self or a little different.

3. When did AC start to mention feeling ill: before getting on train, during journey repeatedly, or just as they neared Bow Road.

4. Had AC said anything perhaps to the effect that he had a hangover, or thought he might have food poisoning.

5. Why were they moving right from one side of London to another, and who else was to be living there.

6. How had AC felt about the move.

7. Did AC have a partner, or gone through a recent breakup.

8. How was he feeling about taking on this new job.

9. If he had previously been an assistant manager, why take a step down to a waiter. Had he found his previous post too stressful, or had he taken this new job simply because he needed the money.

10. What was his lifestyle like and what kind of circles did he mix in.

I agree! We don't have much information! Maybe next week things will get clearer and there will be updates! Apparently the guy he was moving with is a close friend and they come from the same town. That's what I have read so far. They were moving from Richmond to apparently East London as probably the new room or flat is cheaper or the new job nearby. We Italians move quite a lot, if we find a cheaper option or a good deal then we move or if we find a new job on the other side of the city. In my 5 years in London I probably moved 8 times! I believe the friend told already everything he knew to the police but the information hasn't been given to the public yet.

 

[MsMiniSleuth]

I agree! We don't have much information! Maybe next week things will get clearer and there will be updates! Apparently the guy he was moving with is a close friend and they come from the same town. That's what I have read so far. They were moving from Richmond to apparently East London as probably the new room or flat is cheaper or the new job nearby. We Italians move quite a lot, if we find a cheaper option or a good deal then we move or if we find a new job on the other side of the city. In my 5 years in London I probably moved 8 times! I believe the friend told already everything he knew to the police but the information hasn't been given to the public yet.

Welcome and ciao, Gia.

So the friend is someone who knows him well. Did he believe he was genuinely unwell?

Just my personal feeling, but I am still hedging my bets on this angle. I could understand it if he hadn't vanished, but I am troubled that maybe it was just something he said in order to get away and before they reached where they were going. Why? Either his mental state and things were getting on top of him, or for some other reason preventing him.

 

[Gia86]

Welcome and ciao, Gia.

So the friend is someone who knows him well. Did he believe he was genuinely unwell?

Just my personal feeling, but I am still hedging my bets on this angle. I could understand it if he hadn't vanished, but I am troubled that maybe it was just something he said in order to get away and before they reached where they were going. Why? Either his mental state and things were getting on top of him, or for some other reason preventing him.

Hi there! I don't know them personally but I read that they are close friends and come from the same town. They also have photos together on social media. I am having your same thoughts on this case... interesting would be to know when he got sick, suddenly or was he already sick from the morning?! Did he maybe act that way for some reason?! Is the friend aware of anything going on? Was it planned? I can't believe that a person vanishes in the middle of the day like, gets off the tube, says he is feeling sick, goes out from the station and disappears. I always like to "dig" deeper...

 

[Officer Dibble]

I wish we had more information on this case. These are the questions I would like to ask:

1. The friend who AC was with that morning, was he a longstanding friend who knew him well, or just a more casual acquaintance.

2. How had AC seemed that morning as they set off, his usual self or a little different.

3. When did AC start to mention feeling ill: before getting on train, during journey repeatedly, or just as they neared Bow Road.

4. Had AC said anything perhaps to the effect that he had a hangover, or thought he might have food poisoning.

5. Why were they moving right from one side of London to another, and who else was to be living there.

6. How had AC felt about the move.

7. Did AC have a partner, or gone through a recent breakup.

8. How was he feeling about taking on this new job.

9. If he had previously been an assistant manager, why take a step down to a waiter. Had he found his previous post too stressful, or had he taken this new job simply because he needed the money.

10. What was his lifestyle like and what kind of circles did he mix in.

Yes I wish we had answers to all these pertinent questions, because it would us focus our thoughts better. I believe I've already covered your question no. 9 in my post last night.

JMO MOO

 

[jackal67]

Are the Police actually doing anything to find him!! Searching CCTV etc. Always seem to ignore the missing men IMO. I think he has not gone missing of his own accord. It is said he looked ill when he left the station. I think he must have collapsed somewhere or he has come to some harm. Is this an area of London that is considered unsafe?

 

[MsMiniSleuth]

Are the Police actually doing anything to find him!! Searching CCTV etc. Always seem to ignore the missing men IMO. I think he has not gone missing of his own accord. It is said he looked ill when he left the station. I think he must have collapsed somewhere or he has come to some harm. Is this an area of London that is considered unsafe?

I think they should issue the last CCTV image.

Now 11 days on and nothing really from police. I wonder if perhaps they DO feel he has gone missing of his own accord?

 

[JuicyLucy]

Are the Police actually doing anything to find him!! Searching CCTV etc. Always seem to ignore the missing men IMO. I think he has not gone missing of his own accord. It is said he looked ill when he left the station. I think he must have collapsed somewhere or he has come to some harm. Is this an area of London that is considered unsafe?

I'd say it's pretty safe. A bit edgy in places, but gentrified compared with 30 or 40 years ago. I'd feel comfortable moving around alone there, including at night. Certainly safe on a weekday at 1pm imo.

I agree with you @jackal67 that this doesn't feel like a voluntary disappearance. Quite apart from anything else, it's a situation that practically guaranteed someone would raise the alarm fairly quickly. If you wanted to walk out of your own life, I think you'd try to give yourself a better head start than that.

I would also like to see more action from the police but we all know how overstretched they are. Even if family and friends manage to secure CCTV, the manpower to review it might not be there. I think a good move would be to mobilise local support via a fb community group or similar, and get people looking through doorbell cam footage, CCTV from local businesses and actually searching on the ground.

 

[AcbMurders]

It’s absolutely heartbreaking to see AC’s mum reposting the same appeals or asking saints for help every day on social media

I can’t get my head round the fact that AC went missing at Bow Road tube station and yet Richmond are dealing with it. Hope the London Met are now involved. What are they doing?

Just as an example, where I live, North Yorkshire Police (NYP) put out an appeal this morning for a guy who had been reported missing in Barnsley, South Yorkshire, but who was believed to have travelled to Selby, North Yorkshire, some 40 miles/65km away. Hence, the case was promptly passed on to NYP who very sadly found him dead a few hours after their appeal and intensive searches. And NYP haven’t exactly covered themselves in glory in the past re. missing people, by the way (see Claudia Lawrence).

Hopefully, AC’s case is totally different and he’s going to be found alive and well. But why is the approach so different and why haven’t we had any appeals from Tower Hamlets Police or whichever district should be looking for him in East London? Ok, Richmond and Bow are only 20 miles away, but population down there is huge and the two areas are relatively far from each other.

In short: no appeal from East London police, Met or else. When Sarah Everard went missing a few months ago, the alarm was raised by friend and family as quickly as it was for Antonino. But Police started looking for her immediately. Whilst AC is a man, he was arguably more vulnerable (if he was feeling so sick) and the circumstances more unusual. Is it just because he’s a ‘foreign waiter’? I really, really hope not …

 

[Officer Dibble]

It’s absolutely heartbreaking to see AC’s mum reposting the same appeals or asking saints for help every day on social media

I can’t get my head round the fact that AC went missing at Bow Road tube station and yet Richmond are dealing with it. Hope the London Met are now involved. What are they doing?

Just as an example, where I live, North Yorkshire Police (NYP) put out an appeal this morning for a guy who had been reported missing in Barnsley, South Yorkshire, but who was believed to have travelled to Selby, North Yorkshire, some 40 miles/65km away. Hence, the case was promptly passed on to NYP who very sadly found him dead a few hours after their appeal and intensive searches. And NYP haven’t exactly covered themselves in glory in the past re. missing people, by the way (see Claudia Lawrence).

Hopefully, AC’s case is totally different and he’s going to be found alive and well. But why is the approach so different and why haven’t we had any appeals from Tower Hamlets Police or whichever district should be looking for him in East London? Ok, Richmond and Bow are only 20 miles away, but population down there is huge and the two areas are relatively far from each other.

In short: no appeal from East London police, Met or else. When Sarah Everard went missing a few months ago, the alarm was raised by friend and family as quickly as it was for Antonino. But Police started looking for her immediately. Whilst AC is a man, he was arguably more vulnerable (if he was feeling so sick) and the circumstances more unusual. Is it just because he’s a ‘foreign waiter’? I really, really hope not …

It seems the Police have gone publicly silent. Does that mean they are doing nothing? I think they are even more overstretched than usual. It's not right though. His poor mum - she needs to kick up a fuss to get her son the attention he deserves. JMO MOO

 

[jackal67]

It seems the Police have gone publicly silent. Does that mean they are doing nothing? I think they are even more overstretched than usual. It's not right though. His poor mum - she needs to kick up a fuss to get her son the attention he deserves. JMO MOO

It honestly isn't good enough is it? What could we do to help the Family? Any ideas anyone? Have they travelled over here or are they still in Italy?

 

[MsMiniSleuth]

It honestly isn't good enough is it? What could we do to help the Family? Any ideas anyone? Have they travelled over here or are they still in Italy?

They are still here. I have passed on to them via a friend that there are people willing to help and given some suggestions for searching.

 

[jackal67]

They are still here. I have passed on to them via a friend that there are people willing to help and given some suggestions for searching.

Thank you. Feel so sad for them

 

[StillDiggin]

Yes, lack of police appeals worries me. I was thinking about the massive murder investigation that the met police have been dealing with in recent days and now a suspect has been found I was hoping the met police would be turning to other matters including finding Antonino, but sadly it still doesn’t appear to be the case.

 

[MsMiniSleuth]

Yes, lack of police appeals worries me. I was thinking about the massive murder investigation that the met police have been dealing with in recent days and now a suspect has been found I was hoping the met police would be turning to other matters including finding Antonino, but sadly it still doesn’t appear to be the case.

They didn't do much with the Southampton/Waterloo guy did they. His family were finding out more than the police.

 

[AcbMurders]

This article says that tomorrow night in Positano there will be a gathering to pray for Antonino and support his family Positano, mercoledì 29 settembre un momento di preghiera per Antonino Coppola - Positanonews The TV programme, Chi l’ha Visto, will almost certainly be there live.

 

[AcbMurders]

This other Italian article says that the area of Bow Road tube station is covered in posters about Antonino. No other new info. Enigmatica scomparsa di un giovane italiano a Londra (warning: lots of adverts appear if you open the link)

 

[Positano86]

They are still here. I have passed on to them via a friend that there are people willing to help and given some suggestions for searching.

I had done the same...

it is a true mystery how somebody can go missing in the middle of the day in one of the most surveilled cities on the planet.

the lack of information is frightening, i hope there is a reason why the police are so quiet.

 

[MsMiniSleuth]

the lack of information is frightening, i hope there is a reason why the police are so quiet.

You can bet your boots the police will likely know more, even just basic things like exactly what the friend said, and studying the station CCTV.

 

[AcbMurders]

Latest update from Chi l’ha Visto tonight (I’ll post a link as soon as it becomes available):

• Still no news about Antonino’s whereabouts;
• Antonino and his flat mate, Ciro, should have got off the train at Bromley-by-Bow, but he felt sick and they stopped at Bow Road;
• After waiting on the platform with their luggage for 25-30 mins, Ciro went out looking for him taking the luggage with him;
• In a phone conversation with the CHLV reporter, Ciro says that CCTV shows Antonino throwing up as he comes out of the station, after which he looks back as if he’s embarrassed that he’s been seen (or so Ciro thinks);
• It’s confirmed that he turned right as he came out of the station;
• Last week’s appeal generated a great response, esp. people wanting to help, both in London and in Italy, but no concrete leads;
• Ciro keeps posting about Antonino on Instagram.