On September 10, 1988, 15-year-old Lee Boxell, a pupil at Cheam High School, left home and was never seen again.
Since then, Lee’s parents, Peter and Christine, have been left without any information about his whereabouts.
Back in January, Peter shared with Your Local Guardian: “It was September 10, 1988, and I got up in the morning along with my wife and daughter.
“Lee got up a bit later and he came downstairs in his pyjamas and slumped down in an armchair, and I told him that I was going to do some shopping in Sutton after dropping his sister off at a friend’s home.
“So, we left the house, said cheerio, and left Lee half-asleep in the living room in the armchair in his pyjamas.”
When Peter returned from shopping, Lee was nowhere to be seen.
He was later spotted in Sutton town centre at around 2.20pm but never made it home.
Peter recalled: “I’d assumed he’d gone out to Sutton with his friends, which he usually did on a Saturday.
“As the evening came, I was making dinner and I was expecting Lee to come home, but there was no sign of him.”
He understood that Lee could have forgotten to call, but said it was “unusual” for him because “he was very caring and considerate”.
The family tried calling hospitals, friends, relatives and neighbours, and eventually contacted police.
Officers drove around Sutton searching for Lee, but no trace was found.
Peter said: “It was a living nightmare for me and Christine.
“We were awake all night, just in case the doorbell or the telephone rang.
“The living nightmare went on for weeks, but over the next few days, the police made lots of enquiries.”
Witnesses later placed Lee on Sutton High Street that morning.
Police noted it was highly unusual for him to be away without contacting home, and national appeals for information followed.
In 2013, police investigated claims involving convicted sex offender William Lambert, including excavations in a Cheam churchyard, but found no evidence, and Lambert was never charged in connection with Lee.
Peter said that he and Christine have kept Lee’s room as it was and continue to live in the family home, adding: “We’ve lived here since the house was built, and because Lee went missing from here, we just couldn’t bear to move in case Lee came back.
“I don’t think that’s going to happen now, but I just couldn’t think of moving now”.
The family’s main hope is to find out what happened to Lee and they remain appealing for any information about his whereabouts.
Peter said: “If anybody knows what happened to Lee, please, please contact the police.
“Or, if they need to be anonymous, contact Crime Stoppers.
“There is a substantial award of £20,000.”
