Cops issue new appeal for Scots mum feared murdered after vanishing 55 years ago

Isabella Skelton was last seen 55 years ago but was only reported missing in 2019.

Police have made a fresh appeal on Crimewatch for information about a Scots mother who is feared murdered after disappearing more than 55 years ago.

Isabella Skelton, originally from Glasgow, was last seen in the Crumpsall area of Manchester on June 5, 1969.

The mother-of-three had moved south with her family in the 1960s before her disappearance aged 35.

Greater Manchester Police (GMP) confirmed in December last year that the case had been classed as a murder inquiry.

One man has been interviewed under caution on suspicion of her murder but no one has been charged.

Ms Skelton's family have tried various means to trace her over the decades, including drawing on the services of a genealogist. However, it wasn't until 2019 that her daughter realised her mother was never formally reported missing.

In 2021, detectives carried out a three-month forensic search and excavation of her last known address. No human remains or conclusive evidence were uncovered.

Martin Bottomley, Head of GMP's Cold Case Review Unit, appeared on BBC One's Crimewatch Live programme to urge people to come forward.

He said: "She was only reported formally missing in 2019 and we could find no physical or digital trace of Isabella at that time.

"It changed from a missing persons investigation to a criminal investigation.

"We received some information that her former home had been concreted over in the cellar and in the garden so we spent three months excavating that house but we found no sign of any human remains or Isabella.

"It's just that little bit of information we need. You may have known Isabella when she was living in Crumpsall, you may have worked with her, and any tiny piece of information that you can give us might help us.

"We really need to find those answers for her family and put this matter to rest."

Speaking earlier this year, Ms Skelton's daughter Lynda Chapman, 70, told how her mum went missing just days before her 15th birthday.

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She said: "We had a normal family life and she was a typical mum. She went to work and she looked after the house.

"In the beginning I was surprised she left before my birthday. My dad just told me that she had gone to work away and that was basically it. You need a mother and I found not having one traumatic."

Ms Skelton was born in Glasgow on January 21, 1934, and lived in the Anderson area before marrying Lewis Skelton in 1952.

The couple lived on Carnoustie Street, in the city's Tradeston, before relocating to Greater Manchester in the 1960s, first living in Salford then moving to Crumpsall. They had three children, Lynda, Richard and Stephen.

Ms Skelton worked for Atlas Express, based in Salford, and at Gallagher Cigarettes. She was working at Ball Bearings Services at the time of her disappearance.

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