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Luke Durbin - Suffolk, England


danibear

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This is an interesting case and its all played out within the vicinity of where i grew up and now live a short distance away from. Luke went missing around 4am on May 12th 2006 after drinking with friends in Ipswich. He then attempted to return home to Hollesley - around 10 miles from where he was drinking. It is thought he attempted to walk home.

The car in the still on the FindLuke website has never been identified, despite there being a shot of the reg plate on the CCTV footage.

I was drinking in town the same night as Luke disapeared, and very little has been unearthed since, he has literally vanished off the face of the earth so far as most people can tell.

Case Specifics: http://findluke.com/ (I belive this is run by Lukes mother, who has done a massive campaign to raise awareness of her son and his disapperance.)

Latest news: http://www.bbc.co.uk...k-26430247 - FYI this has never been confirmed as belonging to Luke, and therefore investigations are ongoing.

http://www.itv.com/news/anglia/topic/luke-durbin/ - Confirming bone fragment found is 'not human in origin'

Nothing has been found to suggest Lukes whereabouts now. Personally i believe the case is sinister, and that harm has come to him (e.g. his wages not being touched though he was due to collect them that day, hasnt accessed his bank account since 2006....) although i could be well wrong here.

Interested in the thoughts of the UM community on this, its a well known case locally but other than that i believe exposure has been slight. If harm has not come to him, he could be anywhere in the world by now.

I for one would love to see a happy outcome, let alone Nicki his mother.

EDIT: Add link

Edited by danibear
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Your BBC and ITV links don't work. :(

Edited by Child of Bast
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Not much info to go on, but the car would have been checked by the license number with the DVLA, if it was not registered it would be on the watch out for list and all breakers yards checked out. So I would forget about the car bit, possibly the driver had been interviewed and nothing came of it....but again, not enough known here, we have no reports from the police investigation apart from cctv evidence, and even then we have no video of him on camera.

What does seem strange is him leaving his friend in the club with out saying anything, was he due to meet someone somewhere? It appears the last person to see him was at the taxi rank......was the car from the taxi rank?

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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-suffolk-18036290

I take it this is the friend he went to the nightclub with? But it says just after midnight, but the time at the left corner says 04.57??

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Your BBC and ITV links don't work. :(

Apologies. I'm not sure if they all work if you are outside the UK (cant see where you are).

Heres a few more ive managed to dig out:

http://www.suffolk.police.uk/newsandevents/newsstories/2013/december/lukedurbininvestigation.aspx - Local police investigation (updated Dec 2013)

http://crimeandjustice.co.uk/2013/03/11/luke-durbin-missing-person-enquiry-update/

http://www.websleuths.com/forums/showthread.php?178508-UK-Luke-Durbin-19-Ipswich-2006

There seems to be a frustratingly small amount of info on this. He literally appears to have 'vanished into thin air'.

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Not much info to go on, but the car would have been checked by the license number with the DVLA, if it was not registered it would be on the watch out for list and all breakers yards checked out. So I would forget about the car bit, possibly the driver had been interviewed and nothing came of it....but again, not enough known here, we have no reports from the police investigation apart from cctv evidence, and even then we have no video of him on camera.

What does seem strange is him leaving his friend in the club with out saying anything, was he due to meet someone somewhere? It appears the last person to see him was at the taxi rank......was the car from the taxi rank?

I cant find anything right now as a source (i will have a hunt for it) i remember there being something saying that they never actually identified that vehicle, although i imagine the DVLA would have been the first port of call.

I'm not sure if there was ever video of Luke and thats where the still came from, however you would think if they had a video somewhere it would show him at least in the middle of the crossing and not right at the edge of the picture.

He had no money on him at the taxi rank and its therefore assumed he vnever made it into a taxi. There was talk at sometime of someone possibly seeing him walking on a road further out of the town centre towards the village he lived in. This was some years ago now and i cant find anything recent on it so it may well have been discredited in the process.

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http://www.bbc.co.uk...uffolk-18036290

I take it this is the friend he went to the nightclub with? But it says just after midnight, but the time at the left corner says 04.57??

That is weird. I can only imagine that either the time set was wrong or the news reported it wrong. Either way i cant find anything confirming it??? :S

Cardinal Park is perhaps a 20 minute walk from where he was spotted at 4am on Dogs head street (the cctv still on the crossing) it cant have taken 4 hours to do that surely?

What i find especially odd is that he left his friend (who had gone to buy them both drinks) when he had no money and no viable way to get home. Surely he must have known his friend would lend him the money if he wanted a taxi back? As most friends would? I can assume he had a phone on him at the time but we can assume from that that there is nothing viable to be gained from it -Much like his bank account it may not have been used since the day of his disappearance.

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That is weird. I can only imagine that either the time set was wrong or the news reported it wrong. Either way i cant find anything confirming it??? :S

Cardinal Park is perhaps a 20 minute walk from where he was spotted at 4am on Dogs head street (the cctv still on the crossing) it cant have taken 4 hours to do that surely?

What i find especially odd is that he left his friend (who had gone to buy them both drinks) when he had no money and no viable way to get home. Surely he must have known his friend would lend him the money if he wanted a taxi back? As most friends would? I can assume he had a phone on him at the time but we can assume from that that there is nothing viable to be gained from it -Much like his bank account it may not have been used since the day of his disappearance.

Leaving the friend is very strange, possibilities of why he would have done that have to have been looked into.

if he had a mobile, then the police should have been able to get a record of his calls, incoming and out going,....at least a weeks records should have been checked. 1 possibility for leaving could be he had a prior arrangement to meet someone, his friend could well have known more than what he was saying. very strange for the friend not to have looked further for him, especially if he knew he had no money.........why go to a club with no money in the first place? he would have been relying on his friend, think the friend should have been questioned further, maybe he was?

Edited by freetoroam
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Leaving the friend is very strange, possibilities of why he would have done that have to have been looked into.

if he had a mobile, then the police should have been able to get a record of his calls, incoming and out going,....at least a weeks records should have been checked. 1 possibility for leaving could be he had a prior arrangement to meet someone, his friend could well have known more than what he was saying. very strange for the friend not to have looked further for him, especially if he knew he had no money.........why go to a club with no money in the first place? he would have been relying on his friend, think the friend should have been questioned further, maybe he was?

This is what i find so frustrating about it all. I remember the case back when it was around and it all seemed to go cold remarkably quickly. There is very little information confirmed by anyone, regarding the questioning of the friend, the mobile phone, if he had no money he must have had a wallet? Being 19 and looking young as he did hes a prime target to be asked for ID - so you would think he would carry it. Zest (the nightclub he left the friend in) always ID'd me on every visit i made to the club until it closed. The club closed in dramatic circumstances actually as someone was killed in there.

His mate may have perhaps owed him a couple of drinks or perhaps a favour which was why he was buying the drinks as Luke had nothing on him. He may well have had a prior arrangement but unless it was for something a little 'naughty' you would think he would have said something to his friend about it. If it was of a slight unsavoury nature then it adds a whole new realm of possibilities in this.

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This is what i find so frustrating about it all. I remember the case back when it was around and it all seemed to go cold remarkably quickly. There is very little information confirmed by anyone, regarding the questioning of the friend, the mobile phone, if he had no money he must have had a wallet? Being 19 and looking young as he did hes a prime target to be asked for ID - so you would think he would carry it. Zest (the nightclub he left the friend in) always ID'd me on every visit i made to the club until it closed. The club closed in dramatic circumstances actually as someone was killed in there.

His mate may have perhaps owed him a couple of drinks or perhaps a favour which was why he was buying the drinks as Luke had nothing on him. He may well have had a prior arrangement but unless it was for something a little 'naughty' you would think he would have said something to his friend about it. If it was of a slight unsavoury nature then it adds a whole new realm of possibilities in this.

All realms of possibilities have to be looked at when there are so many unanswered questions.

It is possible he did tell his friend about an arrangement, hence why his friend did not do more at the time to go looking for him, he may have been prepared for him to go somewhere.....but this is only a possibility.

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All realms of possibilities have to be looked at when there are so many unanswered questions.

It is possible he did tell his friend about an arrangement, hence why his friend did not do more at the time to go looking for him, he may have been prepared for him to go somewhere.....but this is only a possibility.

I think there may even be the possibility he spent some time in a residence somewhere between being spotted at midnight (according to the police - or 4/5am according to the pic?????) and being spotted at Dogs Head st at 4am. There are a whole load of residential areas between those two places including a large dockland redevelopment that houses a variety of people. Back in 2006 there were a few people there but there were also many areas that were building sites.

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I think there may even be the possibility he spent some time in a residence somewhere between being spotted at midnight (according to the police - or 4/5am according to the pic?????) and being spotted at Dogs Head st at 4am. There are a whole load of residential areas between those two places including a large dockland redevelopment that houses a variety of people. Back in 2006 there were a few people there but there were also many areas that were building sites.

The problem here, is there is no Luke, and without a body (thats sounds awful, but its true) the police can interview and have as many suspects and witnesses as they can find, without hard core evidence of a crime being committed ( there is always a possibility there was no crime ) then this is a case of a missing person with very suspicious circumstances and very little evidence.

Would be interesting to know if any other young people went missing within the surrounding area or if this was an isolated incident.

For his family, they can only hope that time will produce something. I hope it does.

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The problem here, is there is no Luke, and without a body (thats sounds awful, but its true) the police can interview and have as many suspects and witnesses as they can find, without hard core evidence of a crime being committed ( there is always a possibility there was no crime ) then this is a case of a missing person with very suspicious circumstances and very little evidence.

Would be interesting to know if any other young people went missing within the surrounding area or if this was an isolated incident.

For his family, they can only hope that time will produce something. I hope it does.

Me too, his poor mother has done a great job of keeping this alive and still appeals regularly for information. I will have a deeper look but the only real significant murders of young people in 2006 were the suffolk strangler victims. Luke in no way fits that profile though as all the SS victims were young women and they were all sex workers. Ipswich is a reasonably sleepy town and something like that rocked it somewhat.

I need to visit the library this week anyway so i will see if i can hunt down anything in there.

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Working in the private transport business I would fear he may have got into an unlicensed cab/taxi if he was looking for a way home.

A very dangerous thing to do as many in city areas are operated by organized gangs. In the past they were just people trying to make money illegally without proper licensing or insurance. Nowadays the people doing it often have far more sinister motivations such as robbery, mugging or assault.

The untraceable car does seem to fit this possibility. The gangs will target vulnerable people if they think there is a chance of gaining money from them. If they establish they cannot get the money they want things can turn very nasty and in some situations get totally out of hand. I hope this isn't the case but looking for a cab and mystery cars make me fear the worse.

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Working in the private transport business I would fear he may have got into an unlicensed cab/taxi if he was looking for a way home.

A very dangerous thing to do as many in city areas are operated by organized gangs. In the past they were just people trying to make money illegally without proper licensing or insurance. Nowadays the people doing it often have far more sinister motivations such as robbery, mugging or assault.

The untraceable car does seem to fit this possibility. The gangs will target vulnerable people if they think there is a chance of gaining money from them. If they establish they cannot get the money they want things can turn very nasty and in some situations get totally out of hand. I hope this isn't the case but looking for a cab and mystery cars make me fear the worse.

Thanks for the post, not something i've actually considered until now. Great point though which again pops up a realm of possibilities. Perhaps he got into an unlicensed cab with no money and something then happened as a result..?

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Thanks for the post, not something i've actually considered until now. Great point though which again pops up a realm of possibilities. Perhaps he got into an unlicensed cab with no money and something then happened as a result..?

Yes it is a possibility.

If he had some money he may have already agreed a deal with the driver for that amount. Unfortunately I have heard this many times, they drive away then stop not far away and pick up more gang members. At this point they believe the passenger has access to more funds, banks card, credit cards or personal belongings.

If the passenger cannot meet the demands then things can become very nasty. I also suspect that there are far more victims of this type of crime than reported. They are often very intoxicated and feel foolish as well as alone, in addition they have been through an extremely traumatic experience being threatened and possibly assaulted.

Interestingly 8 years ago Ipswich seemed to have a problem along these lines.

http://uk.politics.misc.narkive.com/yRDjoRf9/illegal-immigrant-minicab-drivers-running-riot-in-ipswich

Edited by skookum
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Working in the private transport business I would fear he may have got into an unlicensed cab/taxi if he was looking for a way home.

A very dangerous thing to do as many in city areas are operated by organized gangs. In the past they were just people trying to make money illegally without proper licensing or insurance. Nowadays the people doing it often have far more sinister motivations such as robbery, mugging or assault.

The untraceable car does seem to fit this possibility. The gangs will target vulnerable people if they think there is a chance of gaining money from them. If they establish they cannot get the money they want things can turn very nasty and in some situations get totally out of hand. I hope this isn't the case but looking for a cab and mystery cars make me fear the worse.

This is definitely a possibility....I mentioned in post 4 about the taxi, ",It appears the last person to see him was at the taxi rank......was the car from the taxi rank? ", but you have given a more knowledgeable insight into this area. :tu:

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I found this play of the entire taxi lot video on an additional link on this thread's posted sites.

http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-suffolk-16071778

It does look to me as if his hand is actually reaching out for the car door handle.

I have couple of other questions though, please excuse my ignorance re. English customs/regulations. What time did the bar close ? How long did his friend remain at that bar after having purchased drinks waiting for him to return? I'm wondering that with regard to the 4 hour time difference. Am I missing here an actual video tape or statement from that friend ?

Is there any indication that this might have been some type of hate crime as we unfortunately have happen here in the US ?

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i also fear he is no longer on earth (because of the lack of funds obtained) , so young!

That's so sad. Could the lack of a few dollars cost this kid his life ? Heart breaking. I also wonder if it might be also a case of his family's lack of funds that are part of the reason his disappearance didn't receive the daily newspaper coverage that some do. I watch those Discovery Channel mystery documentaries all the time besides being financially prominent it does seem some times when members who dog the press and LE for resolution, it does help in keeping the cases in the forefront.

I wanted to also note that I just finished another true crime novel re. another serial murderer in Boston and they were all but positive one of the victims was taken in by using the cab disguise. Those murders took place here in the States in the early to mid 90s. Just interesting same possible method all the way across the pond.

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i also fear he is no longer on earth (because of the lack of funds obtained) , so young!

Seems that way. Only thing I can say is tightening of taxi licensing should prevent this kind of thing happening again. A well vetted private hire firm would not turn away a young man like Luke for not having the funds on him at the time. With his full name and address a person on there own miles from home should be able to get transport and pay the next day.

Sadly it doesn't always happen as you have the people who take advantage with no intention of ever paying but a good company should be able to tell the genuine people. New technology is also helping this with phone apps and online booking.

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I found this play of the entire taxi lot video on an additional link on this thread's posted sites.

http://www.bbc.com/n...uffolk-16071778

It does look to me as if his hand is actually reaching out for the car door handle.

I have couple of other questions though, please excuse my ignorance re. English customs/regulations. What time did the bar close ? How long did his friend remain at that bar after having purchased drinks waiting for him to return? I'm wondering that with regard to the 4 hour time difference. Am I missing here an actual video tape or statement from that friend ?

Is there any indication that this might have been some type of hate crime as we unfortunately have happen here in the US ?

With reference to licensing laws, these were the days before 24 hour drink laws arrived. At that time i think every bar/club in town had to be shut by 3-4. Zest (where he was) is a place that was open later than most, right up til 3/4.

The video of him and the taxi is interesting too. Seems convincing that he got in....

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That's so sad. Could the lack of a few dollars cost this kid his life ? Heart breaking. I also wonder if it might be also a case of his family's lack of funds that are part of the reason his disappearance didn't receive the daily newspaper coverage that some do. I watch those Discovery Channel mystery documentaries all the time besides being financially prominent it does seem some times when members who dog the press and LE for resolution, it does help in keeping the cases in the forefront.

I wanted to also note that I just finished another true crime novel re. another serial murderer in Boston and they were all but positive one of the victims was taken in by using the cab disguise. Those murders took place here in the States in the early to mid 90s. Just interesting same possible method all the way across the pond.

Vincennes, please let me know when this is released? My morbid curiosity constantly needs new cases and information to peruse :)

I know what you mean, and his mum has done a great job at getting in the press and trying to keep his memory alive. I think shes struggling more these days though as its not so prominent. The poor woman only wants to know where her son is, alive or not.

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