Milton Keynes officers did 'everything properly' in the Leah Croucher case, says police boss after 13-day investigation

The Police and Crime Commissioner has finished his investigation into the way police handled the Leah Croucher case – and is satisfied officers did “everything properly” throughout the 44 months she was missing.

Matthew Barber announced on October 15, days after Leah’s remains were found in a house on Furzton, that he would hold a review to ensure no mistakes had been made by police.

He asked the chief constable to present him with details of all police actions since the day 19-year-old Leah vanished in order to determine if any further inquiry was required.

Last Friday. 13 days later, Mr Barber told ITV news he had completed the review.

He told reporter Rebecca Haworth: “I have seen nothing that concerns me that we should escalate further….I’m satisfied as Police and Crime Commissioner on behalf of the public that the force have done everything properly in dealing with that missing persons investigation.”

But his view has already angered city sources, who say an independent and longer review should have been held.

Home-loving Leah went missing while walking her usual route to work on February 15 2019. Her remains and her possessions were found last month in the attic of number 2 Loxbeare Drive on Furzton, a house in the middle of her route and 500 metres from where she was last seen alive on CCTV.

The case shifted swiftly from a missing persons investigation to a murder hunt. Just four days later officers declared they had a suspect - a convicted sex offender called Neil Maxwell, who was on the run from police at the time of Leah’s disappearance.

Maxwell hanged himself in a Campbell Park in April 2019. Over the preceding five months, he had evaded arrest 18 times.

As a self-employed property maintenance man, he was, according to the overseas owner of 2 Loxbeare Drive, the only person in possession of keys to the house at the time.

Police revealed they had knocked twice on number 2 Loxbeare Drive as part of intensive house to house enquiries in the early days after Leah went missing. But each time there was no reply, they said, and they pushed a leaflet through the door.

During Friday’s interview with Mr Barber, ITV reporter Rebecca Haworth asked him: “Does it not raise any suspicions...? Did you not think that perhaps the police needed to revisit some of these empty houses to try somehow to gain access, seeing that they were so close to where Leah was last seen?”

The PCC replied: “I think you’ve got to look at the proportionate lines of enquiry. For the police to seek to force access to any property where a member of the public does not answer, you’d need evidence. You’d need grounds to be able to pursue those enquiries. And there was simply nothing to link Leah at that stage to that property.”

When asked if handyman’s Maxwell’s name had ever flagged up after Leah went missing, Mr Barber said: “There was no evidence to link Maxwell to Leah’s disappearance. He was known to TVP as unfortunately are far too many people who are suspected of sex offences.”

He added: "There were significant attempts made to arrest Maxwell and he was actively evading seeking to evade arrest by the police across the country.”

Mr Barber then defended the speed of his scrutiny, saying: “I think it was quite right that we had a fast-time review because I want to be able to offer that reassurance to the public – or not – as to whether or not there are any issues of concern.”

The reporter pointed out that it could not be reassuring for the community that the PCC had looked into the case and found there had been absolutely nothing the police had done wrong - and it was “just a stroke of luck” that Leah’s body was eventually found.

"Can you really be proud of the force?” she asked.

"This isn’t about being proud of the force,” replied Mr Barber. “This is about an horrific crime that has been committed. It’s about whether the force have done everything they could as far as those processes are concerned.

"And yes, of course I wish that she had been found earlier. I wish that she had been found alive. But as far as that process is concerned, would it be more reassuring for me to come out and simply criticise the force for something that, in hindsight, they weren’t able to know? I don’t think that would be helpful.”

Mr Barber’s review has not been published but he says it might be in the future.

Some senior sources in the city are not happy that almost four years of police work had taken just two weeks to review.

One leading figure said: "There’s a feeling that Leah could have been found so much sooner. Though the outcome may have been the same, it would have spared her poor family so much agony over the ensuing years.

"I think an independent body should have conducted the review and I think the scrutiny into the police actions should have taken longer to complete.”

Tragically, Leah’s brother Haydon took his own life nine months after her disappearance because he was so tormented by the lack of progress in finding her.

This week their older sister Jade said she wanted it known to the world that the person responsible for Leah’s murder had “Haydon’s blood on their hands too”.