Leah Croucher murder inquiry: Convicted sex offender Neil Maxwell who killed himself is named as prime suspect
The prime suspect in the Leah Croucher murder investigation has been named by police as convicted sex offender Neil Maxwell.
Maxwell was found dead on 20 April 2019 after he took his own life.
Officers searching for Ms Croucher said on Wednesday they had found human remains in a house less than half a mile from where she was last seen on 15 February 2019.
Following a tip-off from a member of the public on Monday, forensics experts have been scouring the house in Loxbeare Drive in the Furzton area of Milton Keynes, where Ms Croucher’s rucksack and other personal possessions were also recovered. The human remains were discovered in the loft.
Ms Croucher vanished on her way to work in 2019
During the time when 19-year-old Ms Croucher went missing, and whilst the owner of the property, who lives overseas, was not in the UK, Maxwell was the only person to have keys to the house. He had them from November 2018.
Maxwell had been employed by the home owner to carry out some maintenance there.
Thames Valley Police said during its “entire investigation to find Leah, there has been no direct link between Maxwell and Leah until Monday this week”.
Hundreds of officers have searched for Ms Croucher over the past three and a half years. They have trawled 1,200 hours of CCTV footage and carried out 4,000 house-to-house inquiries.
Police at the scene in Loxbeare Drive
‘Police previously visited house on at least two occasions’
In the years-long investigation, police visited the Loxbeare Drive property on at least two occasions.
However, there was no response at the house, the force said.
“Therefore, we dropped a leaflet through the letterbox, requesting a call back if the occupants of the property had any information.” Officers also visited the property to scope what CCTV was available in the area.
“It is now known that the owner was not in the UK at the time Leah was reported missing and the house was unoccupied when police attended on these enquiries.”
Ms Croucher’s sister and parents look at flowers outside the property in Loxbeare Drive
Her parents have visited the scene and left flowers along with a handwritten note saying “our darkest fears have come true”.
Ms Croucher went missing as she walked to work at a finance company. She was last seen on CCTV just after 8.15am on 15 February 2019 just a short distance from the house.
Thames Valley Police said: “Whilst Maxwell has been nominated as a suspect, this does not mean he is guilty of any offence. We will keep an open mind, and our detailed investigation will seek to gather sufficient evidence to establish the truth.
“This may or may not implicate or exonerate Maxwell or any other persons from the investigation.”
The disappearance of the 19-year-old prompted an extensive search
’18 attempts to arrest Maxwell’
Maxwell has previous convictions for sexual offences against females and was wanted in connection with a sexual assault in Newport Pagnell in November 2018.
The sexual assault was reported to Bedfordshire Police on 29 November 2018 and the case was transferred to Thames Valley Police the same day, said officers.
“A significant amount of enquiries were made nationally to locate Maxwell and these included 18 attempts to arrest him,” they added.
Thames Valley Police said they are appealing to anyone who had contact with Maxwell between November 2018 and his death in April 2019 or anyone who has information that might help their inquiry to contact them.
They should visit the force’s website or call 101, quoting Op Innsbruck.
Alternatively they can call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.
The UK will “set out a path” to lift defence spending to 2.5% of national income in the spring, the prime minister has said, finally offering a timeframe for an announcement on the long-awaited hike after mounting criticism.
Sir Keir Starmer gave the date during a phone call with Mark Rutte, the secretary general of NATO, in the wake of threats by Moscow to target UK and US military facilities following a decision by London and Washington to let Ukraine fire their missiles inside Russia.
There was no clarity though on when the 2.5% level will be achieved. The UK says it currently spends around 2.3% of GDP on defence.
Ukraine leader Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Sir Keir Starmer and NATO boss Mark Rutte in October. Pic: PA
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A spokeswoman for Downing Street said that the two men “began by discussing the situation in Ukraine and reiterated the importance of putting the country in the strongest possible position going into the winter”.
They also talked about the deployment of thousands of North Korean soldiers to fight alongside Russia.
“The prime minister underscored the need for all NATO countries to step up in support of our collective defence and updated on the government’s progress on the strategic defence review,” the spokeswoman said.
“His government would set out the path to 2.5% in the spring.”
The defence review will also be published in the spring.
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While a date for an announcement on 2.5% will be welcomed by the Ministry of Defence, analysts have long warned that such an increase is still well below the amount that is needed to rebuild the armed forces after decades of decline to meet growing global threats from Russia, an increasingly assertive China, North Korea and Iran.
They say the UK needs to be aiming to hit at least 3% – probably higher.
With Donald Trump returning to the White House, there will be significantly more pressure on the UK and other European NATO allies to accelerate increases in defence spending.
A man has been arrested on suspicion of murder after one man died and another was critically injured in a shooting in Birmingham.
Police were called to Rotton Park Road in Edgbaston, just before 11pm on Friday, to reports that two people had been shot.
One man, in his 20s, was found in a car but was pronounced dead at the scene.
Another man, in his 30s, was found injured at a bus stop, and was taken to hospital where he remains in a critical condition, West Midlands Police added.
Firearms officers arrested a man in his 30s on suspicion of murder just before 12.30am. He remains in custody.
Officers remain on the scene, with road closures in place. The force said reassurance patrols will also be taking place.
Detective Inspector Nick Barnes said: “This is a tragic incident, and we have worked through the night to understand exactly what happened.
“We’ve already made good progress and arrested a suspect, but I still need to hear from anyone who was in the area that we’ve not already spoken to.
“This happened near the busy junction with City Road and it may be that you’ve got dashcam footage or mobile phone footage from the area just before 11pm.
“We really need to hear from you so that we can build as clear a picture as possible of what happened.”
Officers are urging anyone with information to get in contact, with anonymous tips also taken via Crimestoppers.
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