Problems - It's been said that Andrew had no problems and it probably did seem that way to his parents. However I'd be amazed if Andrew wasn't bullied. I was at high school when Andrew was and being into the alternative scene was enough to get you bullied on its own. With how nasty kids can be picking up on every little difference the fact that he was also short, looked younger than he was, wore glasses and would have been considered a "geek" would have made him an easy target for bullies. Staying in the house all the time as reported by his dad and avoiding the school bus are also huge signs of someone potentially being bullied.
All good points i especially agree about the return ticket being a major red herring. One thing though with him using the computers after school. Wouldn't this have been known about by the school and passed onto the police? I know the police were pretty much useless when investigating his disappearance but If he was staying behind late regularly to use the computers wouldn't the school have noticed? Presumably they had some kind of records of the kids that stayed later to use the computers.
Or do you mean he was using computers outside of the school?
It just goes to show, not only are appearances deceiving, but that if you do not fit in at one place, there are other places where you will be just fine. In Andrew's case, his appearance and interests would be apropos to downtown/ midtown Toronto, or perhaps any big city center.I'm afraid you're way off the mark there. SJ16321 summed this up well in his post above:
I was finishing high school around that time (albeit in the UK) and Id arrive early in the morning to use the computer room every day. Never had to sign in, and apparently I wasnt at all noticeable as my teacher never understood why I was so far ahead in that class.
Things may have been different in the US around that time, but I considered my school to be pretty strict. Andrews proposed extra time on the school computers may not have been noticed or logged.
I completely agree. Not a lot seems to be made of the fact he started walking home but I believe the clue to what happened might lie in what he was doing after school.
I also find it interesting the walking home started right after the Summer break and again, I've not heard much about what he did over the Summer. That's 6 or so weeks he could have been meeting up with someone, talking to them.
Ive always leant towards thinking Andrew was groomed by someone he knew IRL.
There is just simply no evidence he met or chatted to someone online. He may have used a proxy at school or at the library but he wouldnt have been able to remove his tracks well enough to avoid forensic detection. The school and library PCs were checked according to his dad. Everyone seems to just automatically jump to this conclusion but there is literally not an ounce of evidence to support it. The exact opposite in fact. That said, the police have been appalling in their handling of this case so its not like we can say with certainty that they didnt mess that search up too.
The walking home from school would be a perfect time to walk with someone or meet someone and arrange a day trip to London.
Theres a lot of reasons why I personally feel Andrew was groomed by someone he knew IRL which I detailed in my first post in the thread.
After listening to the thin air podcast though I am confused a little. His dad believes the Pizza Hut sighting to be genuine. Nobody knows/knew Andrew like his family so if his family believe it was him then thats good enough for me. But if he met someone in London where were they whilst he was in Pizza Hut? Id always felt Andrew met someone he knew IRL who had lured him to London outside of KX but the Pizza Hut sighting means they either left him and went off wherever or he didnt and was wondering around on his own for a while.
I have listened to Thin Air but don't specifically remember if they said Andrew was alone or just seen?
I know Pizza Hut did at one point (maybe still do) a lunchtime/early afternoon all you can eat style buffet. Is it possible he was with someone but that person wasn't at the table at the time, was maybe in the bathroom or at the buffet and therefore wasn't seen?
Does anyone know the distance between his house and school?
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He lived in Balby and attended McAuley Catholic School.
According to a quick Google maps, it puts Balby (random point in the centre) to the school at 5.2 miles according to the route given. I am not sure where in Balby he lived to get a more accurate idea. I think my main takeaway is it appears to be a fair walk, certainly not just 20 mins anyway.
The official website says little more lane so according to google maps 4.1 miles.
I recall his dad saying that it was not unusual for nobody to notice if Andrew was in or not from the time he came home until the time the family ate dinner because he'd normally be in the cellar playing his video games. So my question is how do they even know Andrew was home on time from school all these other days if nobody ever checked until the evening when he was called for dinner? He could have met up with someone and been out with them or hanging with them after school for a couple of hours while it was assumed by the family he was simply downstairs playing on his xbox.
I may have missed this, but does anyone know what type of ticket a single from Doncaster to London Andrew bought? Was it one of those travelcards that includes all tube and bus journeys? Or just a direct single to Kings Cross?