UK UK - Terry McSpadden, 24, Wisbech, Cambridgeshire, 2 Mar 2007

[Al Ka]

Terry McSpadden

• Age at disappearance: 24
• Missing Since: 02-Mar-2007
• Missing from: Wisbech, Cambridgeshire
• Reference No: 10-000639
  
  Help us find Terry Mcspadden
  

From Norfolk police site:

Father of two, Terry McSpadden was 24 yrs old when he suddenly disappeared on 2 March 2007. At that time he was living at his friend’s house in Elm, Norfolk, Sussex ( about 2 miles from Wisbech, Cambridgeshire).

Despite a lengthy investigation by the MIT that has included a number of searches, his body has never been found. Following a decision by a Crown Court Judge in March 2013 the murder of Terry McSpadden would not be continued. The case remains unsolved.

Current progress:

The case will be subject of review and this will include further consideration to searching for and locating Terry McSpadden.

https://www.norfolk.police.uk/news/cold-cases/terry-mcspadden

 

[Al Ka]

(click on image to enlarge)

Official FB page made for Terry run by his family - friends of terry mcspadden

 

[Al Ka]

November 2012
BREAKING NEWS: Man charged with murder of missing Wisbech father Terry McSpadden

Father-of-two Mr McSpadden, 24, who lived in Outwell Road, Elm, was last seen in March 2007, visiting a cashpoint on his way home from a pub in Wisbech.

Police have carried out a number of searches in and around the house he was living in, in Outwell Road, and the surrounding countryside.

Following a case review by the Norfolk and Suffolk Major Investigation Team, Jonathan Porter of Outwell Road, Elm, has been charged with murder and has been detained in police custody.

He will be appearing before Norwich Magistrates tomorrow.
---
Last year, police carried out a major search of the countryside around the area of Mr McSpadden’s last known movements.

Norfolk police said there was a “strong suspicion” that he was no longer alive.

Last November officers also dug up the garden of Fir Tree Cottage, where Mr McSpadden lived.

Mr McSpadden spent the evening before his disappearance on the other side of Wisbech, at the Locomotive Inn.

On leaving the pub, which stands on the town’s Lynn Road, he visited a 24-hour Tesco just before 1am, withdrawing money from a cashpoint, before being driven to his house on Outwell Road, Elm.

Mr McSpadden is believed to have gone to bed on returning home. The following morning, he did not turn up for work.

BREAKING NEWS: Man charged with murder of missing Wisbech father Terry McSpadden

 

[Al Ka]

30 November 2012
After police charge man with his murder, we recall the massive hunt that began for Terry McSpadden after he vanished

He was last seen on March 1, 2007, after spending the evening in the Locomotive pub in Wisbech. Later he was seen on CCTV in the town’s Tesco supermarket but his family neither heard from him nor saw him again.

His mother Helen said later that “we think he had some belongings with him, but he could not have just disappeared off the face of the earth.

“His bank account has not been touched and his mobile phone has not been used since March 3”. Vodafone kept his mobile number alive in case it picked up a signal.
---
Terry, 24, had two children, then aged four and two, who lived with his ex-partner in Wisbech but he had regular contact with them.
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It was a Thursday night when he disappeared and he had been enjoying a few drinks as a court order insisted upon a 7am-7pm Friday-Sunday curfew for a drink related offence.

For that, he was wearing an electronic tag around his ankle at the time. But even the device hasn’t helped locate him.
---
Last November officers also dug up the garden of Fir Tree Cottage, where Mr McSpadden lived.

Norfolk Police confirmed today that Jonathan Porter, 32, of Outwell Road, Elm, has been charged with murdering Mr McSpadden.

(lots of images at the bottom in the link - from searches and also house he disappeared from) GALLERY: After police charge man with his murder, we recall the massive hunt that began for Terry McSpadden after he vanished

 

[Al Ka]

8 March 2013
Terry McSpadden murder: Case against accused dismissed

A judge has dismissed the case against a man charged with murdering a father-of-two who went missing in 2007.

Jonathon Porter, 32, of Outwell Road, Elm, near Wisbech, Cambridgeshire, appeared before Norwich Crown Court.

He was charged with murdering Terry McSpadden, 24, who disappeared from his home in Elm in March 2007. Mr McSpadden's body has never been found.

Judge Peter Jacobs dismissed the case against Mr Porter on Friday, citing insufficient evidence.

Murder case against man dismissed

 

[Al Ka]

27 February 2014 £5,000 Reward Offered To Find Missing Father

A £5,000 reward has been offered to anyone who gives information to help solve the mystery disappearance of a man seven years ago.

Norfolk Police and Crimestoppers have launched a new appeal to find Terry McSpadden, who went missing on March 2, 2007, after spending the evening in The Locomotive pub in Wisbech.

He was last seen there shortly after midnight, when he said he was going home to nearby Elm.
---
Detective Inspector Marie James, from the Norfolk and Suffolk major investigation team, said: "While Terry's disappearance was initially treated as a missing person's inquiry, we have long since believed that Terry is no longer alive and his death was as the result of foul play. His body has never been found."

£5,000 Reward Offered To Find Missing Father

 

[Al Ka]

9 November 2016
Family of Terry McSpadden send out appeal for information nine years after Wisbech father-of-two disappeared

A father-of-two who has been missing for more than nine years is likely to be dead, a coroner’s court heard yesterday.

Though 24-year-old Terry McSpadden’s body was never found and his cause of death is unknown, there has been no evidence that he is alive since CCTV footage recorded him leaving a Tesco in Wisbech in the early hours of March 2, 2007.

“There is no proof of life since 1.10am on March 2. There’s no evidence whatsoever of Terry being alive in the real world anywhere,” Anthony Deacon, a police officer on the investigation, said.

Despite the seeming finality of this decision, the police investigation into how Mr McSpadden died will remain open.

His family is urging anyone with any relevant information to come forward.
---
His mother, Helen Thrower, said: “It’s an open verdict, the police are not going to drop the case, they will still continue.
---
In a two-day inquest, family members heard the details of the days and weeks before Mr McSpadden’s disappearance.

On February 17, just days before the morning he failed to show up to work and was pronounced a missing person, he told those close to him about a strange incident, the inquest heard.

Mr McSpadden had been staying with friend Jonathan Porter after a row with his long-term girlfriend, Rebecca Burton, with whom he had two children.

He had been relaxing on Mr Porter’s sofa that night when he felt that he was drugged in some way, either via an injection or by someone putting chloroform over his face. He woke up some time later to realise he was completely encased in “industrial-style cling film”.

Mr McSpadden’s housemate Mr Porter eventually returned to the home and cut him free. The incident had badly shaken him.

Ian Ayres, a friend and colleague of Mr McSpadden’s, told the inquest via a statement: “He said he thought anyone who had done it would murder him... in his mind he had no enemies to think of.”

Mr Porter was the last to see Mr McSpadden alive before he went missing on March 2.

He was charged with murder in 2012 but a crown court judge dismissed the case in 2013, citing insufficient evidence.
---

Timeline of events

• February 17, 2007: Mr McSpadden tells friends and family he was relaxing on the sofa when he was possibly drugged, woke up and found himself wrapped in “industrial-style cling film”. He feels he is suffocating and his housemate, Jonathan Porter, arrives to the scene and cuts him free.

• March 2, 2007: Mr McSpadden does not show up for work, causing concern. Shortly after he is declared a missing person

• December 1, 2012: Mr Porter appeared before Norwich magistrates charged with the murder of Mr McSpadden.

• March 2013: The case against Mr Porter is dismissed due to insufficient evidence.

• 2014: Crimestoppers offers a reward of £5,000 for information about the disappearance.

• November 7, 2016: A two-day inquest is opened to fully examine the details of Mr McSpadden’s case and determine whether or not he is still alive.

• November 8, 2016: Senior coroner Jacqueline Lake rules that the probability is that Mr McSpadden is dead but the cause and place of death is unknown.

Family appeals for fresh information in missing father case

 

[Al Ka]

Missing man Terry McSpadden probably dead, coroner rules

Terry McSpadden, 24, from Elm, Cambridgeshire, disappeared after spending the evening of 1 March 2007 in The Locomotive pub in Wisbech.

Recording an open verdict at Tuesday's inquest, coroner Jacqueline Lake ruled Mr McSpadden died on 2 March 2007.

A friend was charged with his murder in 2012, but the case was later dismissed due to insufficient evidence.

Jonathon Porter was at the Norwich inquest, but did not answer all questions following advice from his lawyer.

The inquest heard Mr McSpadden was living with Mr Porter at the time of his disappearance.

He was last seen alive, on CCTV, at a Tesco store in Wisbech with Mr Porter at 01:10 GMT on 2 March 2007.
---
Electronic tag

The inquest heard Mr McSpadden's phone had been active two to three days after he disappeared and that someone sent messages from it.

He was wearing an electronic tag at the time and its last record showed he was at Mr Porter's house at 08:43 on 2 March.

The inquest also heard that, two weeks before his death, Mr McSpadden reported waking up encased in bubble wrap or cling film, leaving him feeling scared.

He was cut free from the wrap by Mr Porter.

The coroner said: "Because of a balance of probabilities, Terry has died. There is no confirmed medical cause of death because his body has never been found."

Missing man probably dead, coroner rules

 

[Al Ka]

Father who went missing two weeks after he was drugged and wrapped in industrial clingfilm probably died on the day he disappeared, coroner finds

A father-of-two who disappeared just two weeks after he was drugged and wrapped up in industrial cling film is now likely to be dead, an inquest has heard.
---
An inquest into his death heard that he went missing weeks after a strange episode in which he was apparently drugged unconscious and woke to find himself bound.

The 24-year-old told friends he was staying at a friend, Jonathan Porter's, house when he lost consciousness. He said he later woke and found himself cocooned in 'industrial-style cling film'. His friend cut him free.

Mr McSpadden later feared that someone was trying to harm or kill him, but had no idea who, friends said.

Ian Ayres, colleague of Mr McSpadden, said the incident had left him badly shaken.

He added in a statement: 'He said he thought anyone who had done it would murder him... in his mind he had no enemies to think of.'

Probation officer Diane Edmond, who was in contact with Mr McSpadden, said in a statement: 'He told us he felt himself losing consciousness and felt he was going to die.'
---
Mr Porter was charged with the murder of Mr McSpadden in December 2012, but the charge was later dismissed due to insufficient evidence.

Mr Porter declined to say anything about the case on legal advice at the inquest.

Father who died two weeks after he was drugged 'is probably dead' | Daily Mail Online

 

[Al Ka]

18 March 2017
Memorial service for missing Terry McSpadden 10 years on

A memorial service is being held to celebrate the life of a man who went missing 10 years ago.
---
His mother Helen Thrower said she believes the family will "know the truth eventually".

The service is being held at Walsoken Church in Wisbech at 14:00 GMT.

Mrs Thrower, who lives in Skegness in Lincolnshire, said she wanted to show Mr McSpadden's children "how much he was loved and is missed".
---
"It's still as hard now as it was the first year he went missing. As long as there's no body, there's always a bit of hope.

Memorial for son missing for 10 years

 

[Al Ka]

Terry McSpadden was last seen on the night of 1 March 2007 having spent the evening in The Locomotive pub in Wisbech.

He is known to have visited the local Tesco supermarket in Wisbech just before 1am on 2 March 2007 to get money from a cashpoint and buy a case of beer and is then believed to have gone back to the home he shared with another man, Fir Tree Cottage, on Outwell Road in Elm. It is thought that he then went to bed but he failed to show up for work the next day.

The other man was later charged with the murder of Terry McSpadden in 2012 but the case was dismissed in 2013 by a judge due to insufficient evidence.

An inquest into his death was held in 2016 and an open verdict was returned. It stated that in all probability Terry McSpadden was dead and was likely to have died on 2 March 2007.

At the inquest, the man who was charged with Terry McSpadden's murder admitted that he had been playing darts with Terry McSpadden on the night before he vanished but declined to say whether a statement he had made earlier was true or whether the signature on it was his, citing legal advice. Also, when asked by the Coroner to say what he knew of Terry McSpadden's disappearance he refused to answer, again citing the legal advice he had been given.

He had said that after going to the Tesco store that they had gone back to their house and that when he had woken up in the morning Terry McSpadden was gone and £400 was missing.

In his statement he had said that Terry McSpadden had left the house at about 7am taking most of his things with him. He had said that Terry McSpadden had told him that he had hit a girl and that he had encouraged him to go to the police.

It was also heard in court that Terry McSpadden had had an electronic tag fitted which had picked him up as being in the house at 8.43am. The company responsible for the tag, Serco, said that the tag had not been tampered with.

Terry McSpadden was said to have cycled everywhere and had a black mountain bike that he had repainted from pink and that after his disappearance it too had vanished.

A major search in the countryside around the area that he had lived was made but nothing was found.

In 2012 the garden at Fir Tree Cottage was dug up in a search for his body but nothing was found.

A friend of Terry McSpadden had said that two weeks before he vanished Terry McSpadden had said that he had woken up at his house wrapped up in clingfilm and thought that he had been drugged and that he had been upset about it saying that he had found it hard to breath. It was said that the man that was charged with Terry McSpadden's murder had cut Terry McSpadden free from the cling film cocoon.

At his inquest it was heard that Terry McSpadden had thought that whoever had been responsible for wrapping him up had been familiar with the dogs at the house as they had not barked.

The inquest also heard that a van matching the description of the van that the man accused of Terry McSpadden's murder was seen outside Wisbech police station in the early hours of 2 March 2007 but that they had not been able to confirm whether or not it was his.

The inquest also heard that Terry McSpadden's phone was used in the days following his disappearance although it was not known who had used it. One call had been made to a customer service line on the morning he went missing but it is not known what the call was about.

A policeman at the inquest said that there was no proof after 2 March 2007 that Terry McSpadden was still alive.

Terry McSpadden had two children.

Terry McSpadden - Unsolved Murder 2007 - Fir Tree Cottage, Outwell Road, Elm, Wisbech, Norfolk - Terry McSpadden Unsolved Mysteries UK

 

[wtiger]

Only me!....back from 4 days rest and relaxation

Intriguing case but i am really dubious about the cling film incident.....how drugged was he?

And is it really possible that his friend would have done that to him only to later cut him free?

Ive never seen wrapping someone in clingfilm as a murder technique.

Is it at all possible that Terry was using drugs?
Could anyone other than him or his friend have done the wrapping?

I agree that IF someone else had done this to him, then they would be prime suspect here BUT why oh why would a potential killer choose to attack using cling film in the house of Terrys friend?

Quite a lot makes no sense here

Im guessing that there must be some background that i know nothing about??

Fascinating case and there must be an answer out there

 

[Al Ka]

Terry McSpadden disappeared 12 years ago today.

 

[Al Ka]

Only me!....back from 4 days rest and relaxation

Intriguing case but i am really dubious about the cling film incident.....how drugged was he?

And is it really possible that his friend would have done that to him only to later cut him free?

Ive never seen wrapping someone in clingfilm as a murder technique.

Is it at all possible that Terry was using drugs?
Could anyone other than him or his friend have done the wrapping?

I agree that IF someone else had done this to him, then they would be prime suspect here BUT why oh why would a potential killer choose to attack using cling film in the house of Terrys friend?

Quite a lot makes no sense here

Im guessing that there must be some background that i know nothing about??

Fascinating case and there must be an answer out there

I have so many questions myself.

Was there anyone else living at that house apart of Terry and Mr P? Terry was last seen in the house, as it is mentioned in the news that he was driven there after the pub. None of the articles states who drove him there, so I assume it was probably Mr P who was at pub as well. There were multiple dogs in the house (well, more then one).

Mr P lied that Terry went to work at 7 am next morning, while Terry's ankle tag indicated he was at the house at 8.40 am.

Now, how those tags works? Do they run out of battery? How someone who is monitored and also tagged get murdered and body disappears??? Did tag stopped working and nobody checked? Is not tag giving exact or approximate location of that person as well? I have heard that they are possible to remove and leave at home to fool tag officers (or how they are called) while person skips out of house. Was the tag ever located?

With regards to industrial cling/bubble wrapping. Even though strange one, I do believe that this did happen. He mentioned it to numerous people and family. And I do have eerie feeling whoever did that to him was trying to find out how murdering someone feels. For no particular reason at all or no personal reason against the victim. (Of course, there could be some grudge or reasons too).

When you think of it, this manner would not leave any evidence of any trauma or harm on the body. Just death by suffocation, often marked by coroners as "accidental" death.

That Mr.P unwrapped him, indicates to me that he panicked when seeing upon his return that victim was conscious again and gasping for air.

While we only speculate, police must have had their reasons and some evidence that they did arrest and also charged Mr P and no one else. Maybe there was no one else present in both incidents, only him? Plus some additional evidence?

 

[wtiger]

The electronic tag would be easily removed (particularly 12 years ago)....oddly though these were often used in tandem with some type of curfew...ie: person must be at specified address between certain hours

The monitoring service would know only where the tag was....not necessarily the person who should be wearing it.
But if it is suspected that he was not wearing it, the monitoring company should have been knocking on his door.

I agree that surely the finer details of the night in the pub would be very informative
Who was he with in the pub?
Was he very drunk upon leaving?
Who did he leave with?
Is there any cctv from the cashpoint?
Why did the police think his friend was the most obvious culprit?
Who were his enemies?
Did Terry use drugs?
Had he ever had any mental health issues?
Why exactly was he tagged?

Possible questions are endless

Unfortunately there must be a reason why police have not released more info here
And as an active case, i do not think that they would answer any of the above.

Possibility that this is a far more straightforward case than it appears.....if only we could see the full picture

 

[Al Ka]

The electronic tag would be easily removed (particularly 12 years ago)....oddly though these were often used in tandem with some type of curfew...ie: person must be at specified address between certain hours

The monitoring service would know only where the tag was....not necessarily the person who should be wearing it.
But if it is suspected that he was not wearing it, the monitoring company should have been knocking on his door.

I agree that surely the finer details of the night in the pub would be very informative
Who was he with in the pub?
Was he very drunk upon leaving?
Who did he leave with?
Is there any cctv from the cashpoint?
Why did the police think his friend was the most obvious culprit?
Who were his enemies?
Did Terry use drugs?
Had he ever had any mental health issues?
Why exactly was he tagged?

Possible questions are endless

Unfortunately there must be a reason why police have not released more info here
And as an active case, i do not think that they would answer any of the above.

Possibility that this is a far more straightforward case than it appears.....if only we could see the full picture

All your questions, well most of them are answered in previous posts. With regards to tagging, Terry was following his curfew and never removed the tag, hence my question what happened to tag and tracking of it?

His curfew was from 7am-7pm Friday-Sunday for a drink related offence. Therefore he had drink after work on Thursday, day before start of his usual weekend curfew. Thursday night (to Friday morning) is when he disappeared.

I personally think there are much more information available in this case that any other UK cases. Police just need to put all puzzles together and of course to find him for his family and children sake.

 

[wtiger]

Thanks for the info....shall revisit this from a different angle now.

I do tend to agree that this one must be solvable....or certainly to the point of being able to draw some sensible conclusions

I seem to remember some furore about the private companies being contracted to oversee the electronic tagging (G4S) i believe were involved.....i shall see if i can find anything

 

[wtiger]

Had a fresh look at the inquest findings.....

The only question in my mind is where was Terry's body taken to?

The evidence given only points in one direction yet the only charges ever brought were thrown out.

It seems pretty clear that the answer does not lie far from wisbech

 

[YaYa_521]

Snipped from an article discussing the cases of four missing men. BBM

Ex-murder detective is helping families 'living on a rollercoaster to hell'

• 23:07, 31 AUG 2020

Terry McSpadden went missing after going to play darts with a housemate.

The dad-of-two had been paid that day and on their way home popped into Tesco.

Terry, 23, was on tag in March 2007 and it last pinged at 8.45am at the house in Elm, near Wisbech, Cambridgeshire.

One man was charged with his murder, but later the case was dismissed due to insufficient evidence.

His mum, Helen Thrower, said: “Terry was a real character. He was a brilliant dad who adored his two children. Kayce and Carlie.”

Before he vanished Terry claimed he thought he was going to die when someone drugged him then wrapped him in clingfilm as he sat on the sofa.

The friend who he was staying with came home and cut him free.

Because of this incident, as soon as builder Terry didn’t arrive at work, the alarm was raised.

Police charged a man with Terry’s murder in 2012 but the trial collapsed due to insufficient evidence.

His mum, who has been bringing up his two children, Charlie, 15 and Kayce, 17, said: “It’s an absolute nightmare.

“He adored them and he worked extra on the weekend to make sure they got everything they needed.”

The family now live in Skegness and the mum said: “People say to Charlie,

‘God aren’t you like your dad but he’s confused because he doestn’t know what he looks like.

“It’s amazing people are going to give up our time to help us. I just want to know what happened to my son.

“It will be 14 years next March and it’s a living hell...There’s never an end to the grief. “

 

[CoverMeCagney]

@Vixey here’s Terry’s thread.