Deceased/Not Found UK - Steven Clark, 23, disabled, Saltburn, Dec 1992

[Inspector Evans]

Was there ever a proper appeal for the 2 men and girl? Does anyone remember who lived around there then? Have seen several people on here from there but may be too young. I'd have had full length appeals in all local papers and on TV and local radio too.

Must've been something on Crimewatch around that time? Will have a look on YT if there are any episodes from Jan/Feb 1993 and what the appeal looks like.

 

[crazychris]

How about this scenario. <modsnip: parents are not suspects> What if it did (modadd: the Walk> though, exactly as she said, and he came out either before or after his mum, walked home, as she did, then something happened at home. Didn't a woman say she'd seen him walking late afternoon near Ship Inn, in direction of home? Something could even have happened as he walked home, hit and run, bundled in a car to be robbed.

 

[Kittypoo]

Must've been something on Crimewatch around that time? Will have a look on YT if there are any episodes from Jan/Feb 1993 and what the appeal looks like.

Yes! Can YT be shared here?

 

[Inspector Evans]

How about this scenario. Everyone who suspects the parents, including me, assumes the walk and toilet didn't happnn. What if it did though, exactly as she said, and he came out either before or after his mum, walked home, as she did, then something happened at home. Didn't a woman say she'd seen him walking late afternoon near Ship Inn, in direction of home? Something could even have happened as he walked home, hit and run, bundled in a car to be robbed.

I assume from the toilet locations you can see a long stretch ahead for the coastline so unless it was pitch dark at that time surely Doris could've seen Steven if he'd come out and started walking ahead of her?

In any case from what she said of the day she was the one who came out of the toilet first, called out his name (so she couldn't have been in there long) and then bafflingly after a minute or two just walked off.

This is different scenario to going to toilets in big shopping centre or railway station if it is packed and the toilet locations aren't particularly visible. If you're just standing in the middle of the atrium you can easily lose someone unless you designate a meeting point but I fail to see how this could happen in an open air location with seemingly plenty of visibility.

I also assume the toilets had cleaners and obviously someone to look up so I don't buy the Steven could've had a mishap in the toilets themselves otherwise he'd been found very quickly.

In the town centre where I live there are cleaners coming into the toilets located in the shopping centre every half hour so any big issues are quickly identified.

I just don't buy the parents story for the day he went missing, it dosen't really ring true but what seems to have happened here is the police didn't really scrutinise the timeline of the day at all and so as years go on it just becomes accepted and now it is very hard to get some independent eyeballs on who saw Doris and Steven out that day.

 

[ekardh]

My problem with the Ship Inn sighting is that the witness didn't think it was relevant at the time, and waited 28 years to come forward. Were they even confident it was the same day that Steven went missing?

Also, the witness only seems to have come forward after the parents were arrested?

 

[Inspector Evans]

Yes! Can YT be shared here?

Had a look quickly at Jan 1993 Crimewatch, nothing on there so perhaps it wasn't even featured which would be surprising.

 

[crazychris]

I just don't buy the parents story for the day he went missing, it dosen't really ring true but what seems to have happened here is the police didn't really scrutinise the timeline of the day at all and so as years go on it just becomes accepted and now it is very hard to get some independent eyeballs on who saw Doris and Steven out that day.

I wonder what makes Mark Williams Thomas so absolutely sure they're not involved. He was asked when they were on morning TV with him and he emphatically said NO.. Said he'd spent more hours questioning them than even detectives and asked them some very searching questions. He didn't have to say that if there were doubt in his mind.

 

[crazychris]

I assume from the toilet locations you can see a long stretch ahead for the coastline so unless it was pitch dark at that time surely Doris could've seen Steven if he'd come out and started walking ahead of her?

In any case from what she said of the day she was the one who came out of the toilet first, called out his name (so she couldn't have been in there long) and then bafflingly after a minute or two just walked off.

Unless he walked on the road above and not beach or prom.

How would she know she'd come out first? Women tend to take longer.

 

[Inspector Evans]

I wonder what makes Mark Williams Thomas so absolutely sure they're not involved. He was asked when they were on morning TV with him and he emphatically said NO.. Said he'd spent more hours questioning them than even detectives and asked them some very searching questions. He didn't have to say that if there were doubt in his mind.

I watched the documentary years back and thought it was pretty good. MWT let into their house and area so clearly this was PR from the parents perspective but he still asked them a few searching questions. Was around the time the letter to the police was looked at and discounted as they tried to build up suspense to that during the docu.

MWT also looked at the football match angle but said they couldn't verify that Charles had gone to the game with the information they had.

Can't remember what MWT said about the actual day Steven went missing. Whether he accepted their version of events or there is a bit of scepticism from him deep down. MWT was actually involved with Michelle Mone when she did that infamous interview with Laura Kussenberg a few years back so that is his role now, offering advice if there's a potential crime case involved in the national press.

I'd never heard of the case growing up in the 90s. It certainly wasn't in the news as regularly as Ben Needham case was in that era so perhaps an element of individuals were comfortable if this case drifted away from people's consciousness.

 

[crazychris]

This was on a morning TV programme after the charges were dropped. Sorry not the ITV documentary. They were on the sofa and him sat there too.

 

[crazychris]

I'd never heard of the case growing up in the 90s. It certainly wasn't in the news as regularly as Ben Needham case was in that era so perhaps an element of individuals were comfortable if this case drifted away from people's consciousness.

I'd never heard of it either until a few years ago on here actually. We lived in Yorkshire then too. Dec 28th would be the Bank Holiday in lieu of Boxing Day on the Sat.

 

[Sillybilly]

Unless he walked on the road above and not beach or prom.

How would she know she'd come out first? Women tend to take longer.

When she came out and couldn't see him, I think it would be natural to think he was still inside and therefore believe she came out first.

If she was just kind of standing outside looking left and right, enjoying the views, no reason to panic ... by the time she may have thought something was amiss, he'd had time to have gone out of sight.

JMO

 

[Inspector Evans]

This was on a morning TV programme after the charges were dropped. Sorry not the ITV documentary. They were on the sofa and him sat there too.

Yes This Morning which is a big entertainment/gossip show on free to air U.K TV. Basically a follow up to the docu and them wanting to tell their story to the nation after they were both arrested.

So I think in their last years it's all about PR and clearing their names rather than appealing for Steven to come home as many decades have passed without a word.

 

[Sillybilly]

I hope Steven's parents have submitted their DNA to one of the genealogy sites on the chance that Steven just was tired of parental oversight, went his own way, went on with life, marriage, kids, etc.

 

[elframo]

I hope Steven's parents have submitted their DNA to one of the genealogy sites on the chance that Steven just was tired of parental oversight, went his own way, went on with life, marriage, kids, etc.

Nice idea, but it never works out that way does it? I think the police have a good idea of what happened and who the culprit(s) are, but can't prove it and with each year that passes it's looking less and less likely that they will...

 

[crazychris]

Nice idea, but it never works out that way does it? I think the police have a good idea of what happened and who the culprit(s) are, but can't prove it and with each year that passes it's looking less and less likely that they will...

Couldn't they have bugged their house when they searched it? The Home Sec. would have to give permission I think if it's not terrorism.

 

[annpats]

.....by the time she may have thought something was amiss, he'd had time to have gone out of sight.

JMO

He wouldn't have been able to get too far, as we know he was disabled and walked with a limp.
Plus, you can see along the promenade in each direction for quite a way.

Also, why would he have chosen this walk (if indeed it even happened) to disappear? He didn't need to go on a walk.
He could've walked out of his house and disappeared at any time, on any day. He could've said he was going to the pub, to a friend's house, to football, to the shop, anything. He simply didn't need to go on this walk to disappear. He could've done it from home, in his own time, and taken some belongings with him.

To be honest, a nearly 1½ hour walk (40 minute there and 40 minutes back) for a limping, disabled man on a cold December in the north east, right on the coast, just doesn't sound right. I don't think Steven would've gone. What was the need? And if he did want to go for a walk, this would have been too far for him, IMHO.

 

[crazychris]

He may have walked up on the road for a change and not the beach or promenade if it was very cold there and had some kind of altercation and been bundled in a car or been knocked down and disposed of. I'd say if it's not the parents and that's a big if, then this is what happened. Doubt he ran away and left his glasses and wallet. Even reading glasses. I have 2 pairs but need both every day.
Apparently he did do that walk often with his mum or sister. Am sure the sister said that. They do say people with lower limb problems should still walk as much as possible.

 

[ekardh]

He may have walked up on the road for a change and not the beach or promenade if it was very cold there and had some kind of altercation and been bundled in a car or been knocked down and disposed of.

Steven was 6'3 and medium build. Who on earth is bundling him into a car and why? And how did anyone manage to miss this on a busy Christmas bank holiday? Just not viable imo.

 

[crazychris]

Steven was 6'3 and medium build. Who on earth is bundling him into a car and why? And how did anyone manage to miss this on a busy Christmas bank holiday? Just not viable imo.

How did his father or even both manage to do that?