Missing Michael Mosley: Son of man who disappeared in 2019 urges TV doctor’s family to keep up search
The son of a man who went missing on a Greek island in 2019 has urged Michael Mosley’s family not to give up their search – saying that “human beings don’t just vanish”.
The TV doctor disappeared on Wednesday while on holiday on the Greek island of Symi after going for a walk from Saint Nikolas Beach, with divers, police, firefighters and sniffer dogs all deployed in the search for him.
Update – search latest:
Wife vows family ‘will not lose hope’
CCTV images have emerged showing Mosley half an hour after he left the beach and then vanished. Rescuers now say the search is a “race against time”.
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Michael Mosley: New CCTV images
The case has parallels to that of John Tossell, a 78-year-old man from Bridgend, who went missing on the Greek island of Zakynthos five years ago this month.
Mr Tossell was on the third day of his holiday with his partner, Gillian, when he disappeared after going on a walk to visit a monastery on Mount Skopos.
When he did not return, a search began for Mr Tossell, who was described by his son as a “fit man” and more than able to make the trip up the mountain without a struggle.
The last confirmed sighting was of him on CCTV passing a hotel and heading out of town towards Vassilikos.
When the local authorities called off the search after five days, Mr Tossell’s daughter Katy launched a fundraising campaign, using the £7,000 it made to bring the Western Beacons Mountain Rescue team to the island to keep searching.
The group found no sign of Mr Tossell, with his family no closer to solving the mystery of his disappearance five years on.
This week’s news about Mosley, known for appearing on programmes like This Morning and The One Show, has sparked fresh memories for Mr Tossell’s family, not least due to the similarity between the two cases.
Michael Mosley went missing on Wednesday
‘Same story but a different person’
“When I read the story it’s like a cut and paste of my father,” Mr Tossell’s son Gary told Sky News.
“He went for a walk and he vanished into thin air. As a family, we got together and said this is surreal. It’s the same story but a different person.”
He added: “I wish nothing but love to the Mosley family as I know exactly what they’re going through and it must be awful for them out there at the minute.
“I want to tell them not to give up.”
Read more:
What we know about Mosley’s last known movements
John Tossell’s son Gary
‘Human beings don’t just vanish’
Mr Tossell’s family have refused to end their search but suspect that either foul play or potential third-party involvement mean they’ll never get the answers they desire.
“My dad was wearing a royal blue T-shirt and the police drove up the path with their blue lights flashing. They never got out of the car,” added his son.
“They knocked it on the head at 11pm and the next day they just went out walking, it was like a walk in the park for them. There was no intensity to their efforts.
“They said that there was a team coming from Athens with dogs and specialists but for some reason that got turned off at the last minute.
“Five days later they stopped searching entirely. Five days only. They said he must have left the island but when he left the hotel he had 10 euros and a bottle of water – you can’t get far with that.”
He added: “We all think as a family that foul play must have been involved. Whether it’s a mugging gone wrong or a car accident and he’s been removed. Human beings don’t just vanish.”
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Mr Tossell’s disappearance was picked up by an investigative crime journalist with her own TV show in Greece that looks to solve cases of missing people.
Fos sto Tounel, which translates as Light in the Tunnel, attempted to piece together the final movements that Mr Tossell made in the hope of uncovering new information, though the show failed to do so.
The Tossell family pushed for a criminal probe into the Welshman’s disappearance and have urged anyone who went on holiday to Zakynthos in June 2019 to check if Mr Tossell appeared in the background of any holiday pictures.
Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch has called on Sir Keir Starmer to sack Treasury minister Tulip Siddiq over allegations she lived in properties linked to allies of her aunt, Sheikh Hasina, the deposed prime minister of Bangladesh.
It comes after the current Bangladeshi leader, Muhammad Yunus, said London properties used by Ms Siddiq should be investigated.
He told the Sunday Times the properties should be handed back to his government if they were acquired through “plain robbery”.
Tory leader Ms Badenoch said: “It’s time for Keir Starmer to sack Tulip Siddiq.
“He appointed his personal friend as anti-corruption minister and she is accused herself of corruption.
“Now the government of Bangladesh is raising serious concerns about her links to the regime of Sheikh Hasina.”
Ms Siddiq insists she has “done nothing wrong”.
Her aunt was ousted from office in August following an uprising against her 20-year leadership and fled to India.
Ms Siddiq is also named with her aunt in Bangladesh court documents about meetings with the Russian government.
Tory leader Kemi Badenoch has called on Sir Keir to sack the minister
Read more from Sky News:
Ten Reform councillors quit in protest
Liz Truss sends cease and desist letter to Starmer
As economic secretary to the Treasury, Ms Siddiq is responsible for policy on both the City and tackling corruption.
She referred herself to the prime minister’s ethics watchdog on Monday following the reports about the properties.
On the same day, the prime minister said: “Tulip Siddiq has acted entirely properly by referring herself to the independent adviser, as she’s now done, and that’s why we brought into being the new code.
“It’s to allow ministers to ask the adviser to establish the facts, and yes, I’ve got confidence in her, and that’s the process that will now be happening.”
Police in Aberdeen have widened the search area for two sisters who disappeared four days ago in the city.
Eliza and Henrietta Huszti, both 32, were last seen on CCTV on Market Street after leaving their home on Tuesday at around 2.12am.
The sisters – who are part of a set of triplets and originally from Hungary – crossed the Victoria Bridge to the Torry area and turned right on to a footpath next to the River Dee.
Eliza and Henrietta Huszti were last seen on CCTV in Market Street. Pic: Police Scotland/PA
They headed in the direction of Aberdeen Boat Club but officers said there is no evidence to suggest the missing women left the immediate area.
Specialist search teams, police dogs and a marine unit have been trying to trace the pair.
The sisters crossed Victoria Bridge before walking along a footpath next to the River Dee
The pair were heading in the direction of Aberdeen Boat Club on the south side of the River Dee
Further searches are being carried out towards the Port of Aberdeen’s South Harbour and Duthie Park.
Police Scotland said it is liaising with authorities in Hungary to support the relatives of the two sisters.
Chief Inspector Darren Bruce said: “Eliza and Henrietta’s family are understandably extremely worried about them and we are working tirelessly to find them.
“We are seriously concerned about them and have significant resources dedicated to the inquiry.”
The sisters, from Aberdeen city centre, are described as slim with long brown hair.
Henrietta Huszti. Pic: Police Scotland
Eliza Huszti. Pic: Police Scotland
Officers have requested businesses in and around the South Esplanade and Menzies Road area to review their CCTV footage for the early morning of Tuesday 7 January.
Police added they are keen to hear from anyone with dashcam footage from that time.
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