Found Safe UK - Owami Davies, 24, from Chafford Hundred, Essex, last seen in Croydon, Surrey, 6 Jul 2022

Yes this could be a similar case to Richard but the 5 police arrests for suspicion of kidnap/murder suggest this is different. What sort of evidence would the police have to do this?
Kidnap may be a no more than a person reported missing, who has not been seen for a few days, observed on CCTV being 'encouraged/helped/tricked/forced' to get into car by others. If there was known vulnerability at the time then this would add to the weight.

Think of Sarah Everard's sickening case. WC was originally arrested for kidnap, based on the bus CCTV images from Clapham.

In terms of the 'reasonable suspicion' of murder. This could be as basic as OD's mobile phone tracking matching those of the two suspects and then OD's phone being switched off and with no activity since.

Just a couple of scenarios. I suspect it will be a combination of CCTV, telecoms data, financial transaction data and possibly some witness statements placing OD with identified individuals around the time that she was last seen.

The evidence for arrests is no more than suspicion that an offence has been committed and that the officer suspects the arrested person of committing it.

It is nowhere near the weight of evidence needed for charge. It is merely to facilitate further investigation, searches, forensics, interview, IT interrogation etc.

The need for immediate arrest does have to be justified though.....as opposed to making an appointment to attend the police station on another day.
 
In terms of the 'reasonable suspicion' of murder. This could be as basic as OD's mobile phone tracking matching those of the two suspects and then OD's phone being switched off and with no activity since.
@Whitehall 1212, do you know how physically close two people would have to be for their mobile phone tracking to match? Would people in neighbouring houses look as though they were in the same place for the purposes of forensic analysis? What about neighbouring roads, if they were equidistant from the nearest mast? Or is it more precise than that? And over what kind of timeframe would 2+ phones have to be in each other's proximity for it to be suspicious enough for an arrest?

ETA: How quickly can police get location data if they need to?
 
@Whitehall 1212, do you know how physically close two people would have to be for their mobile phone tracking to match? Would people in neighbouring houses look as though they were in the same place for the purposes of forensic analysis? What about neighbouring roads, if they were equidistant from the nearest mast? Or is it more precise than that? And over what kind of timeframe would 2+ phones have to be in each other's proximity for it to be suspicious enough for an arrest?

ETA: How quickly can police get location data if they need to?

Lots of questions. Telecoms data is complex....I'll try and keep it simple

It depends if it's GPS tracking or historic cell site data. GPS can be exceptionally accurate....to 1 metre square on smart phones and potentially even less....cm's

Cell site data can be much less accurate, particulate in rural areas where a cell site may cover a large area....many square miles.

However, if a group (say 3 people) were travelling together by car in Greater London, then the phone would be continually searching for and trying to lock onto cell towers, which cover a much smaller area.....just a few streets in some places.

If the phones could be shown to be locking onto the same cell towers at the same time then that is good evidence that the three phones are all in very close proximity.

If one of those phones is switched off it sends a 'goodbye' signal to the cell tower which differentiates it from the phone battery dying, then this may be interpreted as being of significance and may help to identify a crime scene/deposition site area

Cell site data has to be requested from the telecoms companies.. It costs and is not cheap. Depending on the genuine urgency from hours to days.
 
Lots of questions. Telecoms data is complex....I'll try and keep it simple

It depends if it's GPS tracking or historic cell site data. GPS can be exceptionally accurate....to 1 metre square on smart phones and potentially even less....cm's

Cell site data can be much less accurate, particulate in rural areas where a cell site may cover a large area....many square miles.

However, if a group (say 3 people) were travelling together by car in Greater London, then the phone would be continually searching for and trying to lock onto cell towers, which cover a much smaller area.....just a few streets in some places.

If the phones could be shown to be locking onto the same cell towers at the same time then that is good evidence that the three phones are all in very close proximity.

If one of those phones is switched off it sends a 'goodbye' signal to the cell tower which differentiates it from the phone battery dying, then this may be interpreted as being of significance and may help to identify a crime scene/deposition site area

Cell site data has to be requested from the telecoms companies.. It costs and is not cheap. Depending on the genuine urgency from hours to days.

Yes, sorry - always lots of questions, so much to learn! Thank you for all that. It's really interesting.

Like everyone, I'm just struggling to square the original CCTV of OD on a dark street with/followed by a man, with the fact that she was apparently in one piece and walking around independently the next day. The fact that the arrests didn't lead to a charge (or not so far) is making it hard to see where the suspects fit in to Owami's story and whether they actually were involved in her disappearance or not.

What you are saying about mobile tracking is making me wonder if she actually spent any time with them at all, or if she was just very close geographically to them, e.g. because she was followed for a period of time, or they were on the same public transport, or she was staying somewhere very close to where they live. It's interesting to consider that something like that might possibly have justified the arrests.

I don't think the date they've been bailed until has been made public so far. It will be interesting to see what happens then.

JMO
 
Yes, sorry - always lots of questions, so much to learn! Thank you for all that. It's really interesting.

Like everyone, I'm just struggling to square the original CCTV of OD on a dark street with/followed by a man, with the fact that she was apparently in one piece and walking around independently the next day. The fact that the arrests didn't lead to a charge (or not so far) is making it hard to see where the suspects fit in to Owami's story and whether they actually were involved in her disappearance or not.

What you are saying about mobile tracking is making me wonder if she actually spent any time with them at all, or if she was just very close geographically to them, e.g. because she was followed for a period of time, or they were on the same public transport, or she was staying somewhere very close to where they live. It's interesting to consider that something like that might possibly have justified the arrests.

I don't think the date they've been bailed until has been made public so far. It will be interesting to see what happens then.

JMO

I try not to second guess what may have happened as the public are not told anything, unless the police really need the public's assistance to further their investigation.

I can guarantee that whatever folk guess happened that it didn't happen in that way or for the reasons that they thought.

I try and interpret what the strength of the case is based on what the police are saying/not saying and images being released time/date/location/demeanour/activity.

If this is the case then invariably the inside police enquiries are not progressing at the speed they would wish.

The release of the latest CCTV on London Road may undermine any contact with the arrested males if that took place before the latest CCTV. We don't know that though.

As far as I am aware the current maximum bail period is still 28 days after it was reduced as police were felt to be abusing it.

I suspect it will have been set at 28 days +/- 2 days to accommodate the most convenient time for police. Anything considerably less would be unlikely to give police time to make sufficient progress evidentially to avoid having to bail again, which should be avoided unless absolutely necessary.

 
IMO this case looks like a runaway but as to why is anyone's guess. If it's true, I find it odd her mum regularly checked her whereabouts with 'find my iPhone' considering she is 24 years old. This implies to me she is somewhat vulnerable but then at the same time her job as a nurse during Covid, which is a high stress environment, suggests she is not. If she was aware of being tracked then she likely deliberately turned her phone off which could explain why it's so hard to trace her movements.

If this had been a suicide mission, I think it probably would have been more direct but we know she is walking around alone days after leaving her house. This is an unusual case, and I think she actually could still be alive due to the fact that she left on her own accord and was spotted days later. She looks worse for wear in the last cctv sighting, why did she not head home then, there's more to this story and it could involve drugs. Another possibility (pure speculation) is she did have a shower as her mum described but fell and banged her head, resulting in bizarre decisions which seem to make no sense to her family & friends.
 
Detectives investigating the disappearance of Owami Davies have no new leads after CCTV of her was uncovered last week.

The student nurse, 24, left her family home in Grays, Essex, six weeks ago on 4 July.

She was last seen three days later walking north on London Road, Croydon away from West Croydon.

[...]

Owami's desperate family and friends issued another appeal on Monday for help in finding her.

They tweeted: "We try again today, Owami is still missing. No news/sighting of her since.

"Where is she? Why are the cameras not picking her movements? Who took her ? What condition is she in? Where does she sleep? Eat? Dress?

"We have a lot of questions we don’t have answers to. Help us."

Labour MP Dawn Butler also issued a call for people to help, saying: "Please everyone in the area check your video doorbells and CCTVs.

"What has happened to Owami Davies?"

Owami was nearing the end of her studies and due to start a job with Guy's and St Thomas' health trust. She had worked on the A&E frontlines during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Chief Superintendent Dave Stringer said: “I can assure our community that all we can do to find Owami is being done.

"We are working closely with our colleagues in Specialist Crime, who are used to dealing with large, complex investigations and we are providing them all the assistance we can in this extensive inquiry.

"Everyone, I am sure, is hoping that Owami is safe and well and this nightmare for her friends and family will finally end.

"We understand the real anxiety that is currently felt in our community and we have additional officers patrolling to reassure you.

"Please do take the opportunity to speak to these officers about your concerns, they are there to help you and answer any questions you may have."

 
Student nurse Owami Davies has been missing for more than a month since she was last seen in a “vulnerable state”. The 24-year-old from Grays, was spotted on CCTV in West Croydon, South London on July 7 and despite police efforts to locate her, she has not yet been found.

[...]

Ms Davies left her family home in Essex on July 4 before disappearing three days later in South London. Ms Davies was originally reported as missing by Essex Police on July 11. The Met Police launched an appeal at the end of last month and released CCTV footage a few days later showing the last known images of the student nurse.

Potential witness

Officers are keen to speak to the driver of a white van that was parked on Derby Road at around 12.03am. Police said she was in the company of a man and crossed the road just as the van pulled out.

In an appeal released earlier this month, the Met said: “The van driver would have had a good opportunity to see them both clearly and officers are appealing for this possible witness to come forward.”


Officers are keen to speak to the driver of the white van

Officers are keen to speak to the driver of the white van (Image: Met Police)


In its last appeal on August 10, the Met Office confirmed that it remains a missing person investigation. Officers have searched houses and parks, viewed hundreds of hours of CCTV and conducted extensive door-to-door enquiries.

The Met’s Specialist Crime Command is leading the investigation to establish what has happened to Ms Davies. Between August 1 and August 6, they have arrested five men for offences of suspected murder of kidnap, aged 27 23, 32, 22 and 27. They have since been released on bail while the investigation team follows up on further investigation.


What the police is saying

Detective Chief Inspector Nigel Penney, who is leading the investigation said it is "one of the biggest investigations" he has ever experienced, adding "and that reflects our determination to find Owami for her family

"Owami has now been missing for over a month and her family are desperate for news. We are keeping them fully informed, but finding Owami is the only thing that will bring them any peace and for that, we need the public's help."

[...]

 
Officers are keen to speak to the driver of a white van that was parked on Derby Road at around 12.03am. Police said she was in the company of a man and crossed the road just as the van pulled out.

If you look at where the van was parked on Derby road, then this does look even creepier.

This section of Derby road seems to be a dead end street, as the road is blocked in the middle, just where the car park is where the other car was seen coming out at the same time the van pulled out.

There is really nothing much to do on this stretch of road at 12:03 am at least judging by GOogle maps as the two takeaway places there, a chinese and Niazi, are listed as closing at 11pm. The only place that looks like it would be open is the off licence, also Niazi, close by where the van was parked. So maybe it turned into the road to pick up something from there. Not much for OD to do here either except go to the offie.

The car park where the other car was pulling out is a place owned by the carwash and tyre shop there and seems to offer all day parking for a fiver. There is no access from there to the bit of the road where OD was since the road is blocked off to cars, but OD could have gone down there as there is pedestrian access.
 
If you look at where the van was parked on Derby road, then this does look even creepier.

This section of Derby road seems to be a dead end street, as the road is blocked in the middle, just where the car park is where the other car was seen coming out at the same time the van pulled out.

There is really nothing much to do on this stretch of road at 12:03 am at least judging by GOogle maps as the two takeaway places there, a chinese and Niazi, are listed as closing at 11pm. The only place that looks like it would be open is the off licence, also Niazi, close by where the van was parked. So maybe it turned into the road to pick up something from there. Not much for OD to do here either except go to the offie.

The car park where the other car was pulling out is a place owned by the carwash and tyre shop there and seems to offer all day parking for a fiver. There is no access from there to the bit of the road where OD was since the road is blocked off to cars, but OD could have gone down there as there is pedestrian access.
My feeling was that the darker car was more suspicious than the van but now you mention the time of day it does seem quite a coincidence that 2 apparently separate vehicles would move off at the same moment at that time of night.

It is interesting that the police are saying how big the investigation is. It is likely they will know the reason for her leaving home whilst we can only speculate.
 
Student nurse Owami Davies has been missing for more than a month since she was last seen in a “vulnerable state”. The 24-year-old from Grays, was spotted on CCTV in West Croydon, South London on July 7 and despite police efforts to locate her, she has not yet been found.

[...]

Ms Davies left her family home in Essex on July 4 before disappearing three days later in South London. Ms Davies was originally reported as missing by Essex Police on July 11. The Met Police launched an appeal at the end of last month and released CCTV footage a few days later showing the last known images of the student nurse.

Potential witness

Officers are keen to speak to the driver of a white van that was parked on Derby Road at around 12.03am. Police said she was in the company of a man and crossed the road just as the van pulled out.

In an appeal released earlier this month, the Met said: “The van driver would have had a good opportunity to see them both clearly and officers are appealing for this possible witness to come forward.”


Officers are keen to speak to the driver of the white van

Officers are keen to speak to the driver of the white van (Image: Met Police)


In its last appeal on August 10, the Met Office confirmed that it remains a missing person investigation. Officers have searched houses and parks, viewed hundreds of hours of CCTV and conducted extensive door-to-door enquiries.

The Met’s Specialist Crime Command is leading the investigation to establish what has happened to Ms Davies. Between August 1 and August 6, they have arrested five men for offences of suspected murder of kidnap, aged 27 23, 32, 22 and 27. They have since been released on bail while the investigation team follows up on further investigation.


What the police is saying

Detective Chief Inspector Nigel Penney, who is leading the investigation said it is "one of the biggest investigations" he has ever experienced, adding "and that reflects our determination to find Owami for her family

"Owami has now been missing for over a month and her family are desperate for news. We are keeping them fully informed, but finding Owami is the only thing that will bring them any peace and for that, we need the public's help."

[...]

Surely this van must be on CCTV moment later in an adjoining road , just seems to be glacial pace this investigation, similar to the airman Corrie case where it would seem the obvious took place and it's often the simple answer is the actual answer , it seems to.me that OD is suffering from the pictures we have seen, I just hope she managed to find some help and she appears again, but after this length of time I fear for the outcome.
 
Hmmm unless that van has a dashcam, I find it hard to believe the driver would remember two people passing weeks ago, London is such a busy place. I'm surprised they're not spotted in more cctv footage though, as there are a lot of businesses and residential streets nearby, it makes me think they didn't walk for very long outside.

I wonder did she take the tube to West Croydon that night and met the man at the station or had they been elsewhere between leaving home and Croydon.
 
My feeling was that the darker car was more suspicious than the van but now you mention the time of day it does seem quite a coincidence that 2 apparently separate vehicles would move off at the same moment at that time of night.

It is interesting that the police are saying how big the investigation is. It is likely they will know the reason for her leaving home whilst we can only speculate.

Yes, "big investigation" as evidenced by the five arrests. Leads me to thinking that she had gone somewhere to mingle with a number of others; not just being pulled off the street by a lone individual. I think given how she looked late that night and the next day, I would not be at all surprised to hear drugs were involved, whether taken voluntarily or forced to.

But the problem remains on where she went after that last sighting, and where she is now.
 
The house that was searched is this not just a little further down the road from where the van was parked?
I'm not sure why the van would be involved other than be a potential witness as the logical presumption would be that she may have at some time entered that property that evening..or at least at the time that's what the police were thinking.
I also still think this was originally a run away case but I struggle with what was so bad that she couldn't reach back out to her family or a friend or police.
I feel either she was suffering with her mental health in some way or she felt she was in some sort of trouble that she felt would bring shame on her family.
Something may have happened at work is another possibility.
It's difficult to predict what her movements may have been when at present the only information is that "She was vulnerable"
 
The house that was searched is this not just a little further down the road from where the van was parked?
I'm not sure why the van would be involved other than be a potential witness as the logical presumption would be that she may have at some time entered that property that evening..or at least at the time that's what the police were thinking.
I also still think this was originally a run away case but I struggle with what was so bad that she couldn't reach back out to her family or a friend or police.
I feel either she was suffering with her mental health in some way or she felt she was in some sort of trouble that she felt would bring shame on her family.
Something may have happened at work is another possibility.
It's difficult to predict what her movements may have been when at present the only information is that "She was vulnerable"


BBM


It's not far - 3 minute walk or 1 minute drive - but if the van was connected to the house, they would surely park closer.


 
Yes, "big investigation" as evidenced by the five arrests. Leads me to thinking that she had gone somewhere to mingle with a number of others; not just being pulled off the street by a lone individual. I think given how she looked late that night and the next day, I would not be at all surprised to hear drugs were involved, whether taken voluntarily or forced to.

But the problem remains on where she went after that last sighting, and where she is now.
Interesting that her mum said she only has only one close friend, although that may be an underestimate, it's quite clear from both SM and MSM that she did not have a lot of friends as only her mum has spoken out publicly so far. I agree though, this does look like a number of people were somehow involved. Perhaps offering her a place to stay and then taking advantage of her. However she was alive days later so it is odd.
 
BBM


It's not far - 3 minute walk or 1 minute drive - but if the van was connected to the house, they would surely park closer.



Yes sorry I did not mean the van was connected to the house. I think she may have walked to the house and the van is as the police say just a potential witness
 
As I understand Owami
- was at finish of her studies,
- was at a start of a new job.

Why would she abandon her dreams and prospect of a promising career?

Waste an effort put into difficult medical studies?

Turn her back at family and friends?

It is really sad and the outcome might be tragic.
But I still hope it won't be.

MOO
 
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Honestly, I don't find the vehicles that suspicious. You pay for all-day parking if you're going to be gone all day, which says commuter to me, particularly given there's a mainline station 75 yards away. Trains are still coming in at that time of night. Not everyone works 9-5 and then comes straight home.

The van's unlikely to have been there all day because parking is restricted on that stretch until after 5pm, but it could be someone delivering to/picking up from a local business, visiting a local house, drinking in the pub on the corner (last orders at 11, drinking up til 11.30), picking up takeaway at the KFC round the corner on the main road (closes at midnight), popping into a convenience store somewhere near the station, etc etc. Lots going on all through the evening and somewhat into the night on the main road.

And I don't really see the closeness of the pedestrians to the van as suspicious either. That's how people cross roads in urban areas. If you followed the green cross code to the letter you'd never get across some roads. I can see why the police want to know if the driver noticed anything though.

The only thing I find slightly odd about the van is that, despite it being a no through road, it's facing up, towards the main road, as though the driver turned into the road and did a 180 before parking. I would think it more common to pull into a parking space on arrival (especially on that side of the road) and then turn around as you were leaving. But we haven't got a complete film here, and perhaps he did just that, then stood on his brakes to see what the pedestrians would do, which would explain the brake lights. (Or she, ofc.)

I think the van turns left at the top, which is a shame because the only traffic camera in the area is to the right, at the junction of London Road and Tamworth Road. I looked at the traffic cam images between about 11pm and 1am when the Derby Road cctv was released but the quality is too poor to identify pedestrians unfortunately.

JMO
 
Hmmm unless that van has a dashcam, I find it hard to believe the driver would remember two people passing weeks ago, London is such a busy place. I'm surprised they're not spotted in more cctv footage though, as there are a lot of businesses and residential streets nearby, it makes me think they didn't walk for very long outside.

I wonder did she take the tube to West Croydon that night and met the man at the station or had they been elsewhere between leaving home and Croydon.
We do not know whether they were spotted on more CCTV although you would imagine if they were there would have been more appeals from the police.
I agree that the van driver may not be much help, it would be a split second sighting and probably not very clear in the dark.
 

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