John Bowkett

John Bowkett went missing in July 1992.

He had lived in Welfare Road, Woodlands near Doncaster.

At the time he went missing he had had three children, two with his first wife, who later died, and one with his second wife. However, his second wife vanished suddenly leaving John Bowkett alone with his children.

His family said that as far as they knew he had had no problems.

His sister said, 'There was nothing to suggest he was going anywhere. Everything was normal. The first thing I remember is two weeks after he went missing, when my sister came here and said we should all get our heads together. No one had seen him for two weeks, and no one has seen him since. There was no phone call or anything. He would never have left his baby. He wouldn't have just gone. He would have come to his mum or dad'.

The police said that they had three theories regarding his disappearance:

1. He could have gone abroad to make a fresh start with a new identity.
2. He could have woken up with memory loss and forgotten who he was.
3. He could have met an 'untimely end' and his body was lying undetected.

John Bowkett had been one of ten brothers and sisters, and had grown up in Lawn Avenue, Woodlands.

He had first worked at Brodsworth Colliery, but after it closed he started to mend fridges and washing machines.

He was also known for running auctions in pubs in the Woodlands area, and for selling off bric-a-brac for friends and residents. He was well known in the Tally Ho public house in Adwick.

Several reported sightings of him were made over the years, including one of him being at a pub in Whitley Bay and another at a tram stop near Crystal Peaks in Sheffield, but with no further developments.

It was also reported that at one point the police were searching for him in Grimsby, but again without any developments.