Slightly conflicting stories about Leah and any possible relationship. Claire uses the word 'seeing' in the same context in both statements. Or does it just mean her parents didn't know for certain the extent of her involvement with Mr X? But if her parents knew, she may have lied to them on other occasions about where she was going, but why only the one time that the location was turned off, when she was walking home? There's been no mention of 'Leah was late home from work', in which case that would suggest a diversion; everything that evening was about her going out, so is the location a red herring and mere coincidence?
'Claire said: "We were not aware of a relationship before she went missing. We've found out since that she was seeing somebody but that person has been spoken to." '
The case of Leah Croucher has "baffled" police who have been unable to find any trace of the teenager or what happened to her since she was last seen in Milton Keynes, Bucks, seven months ago
www.mirror.co.uk
Then Claire saying: "It started in the summer of last year. She was talking about this man all the time. It was X this and X that ... it was obvious she had a soft spot for him. She'd go and see him in the evenings, paying £13 each way for a taxi. It just wasn't like Leah to do things like that - she'd always been such a home-loving person and didn't like going out much.
Then we found out he was engaged and it sounded like it was an arranged marriage. I remember saying to Leah: 'Don't you go falling for him, he will never be yours.' I was under the impression that she'd stopped seeing him then."
Missing Leah Croucher was almost certainly in a secret relationship with an older man before she disappeared, the Citizen can reveal.
www.miltonkeynes.co.uk