Appeal to goths to help find missing teenager

Published Date: 25 February 2009
THE hunt for a teenager missing for 17 months is to come to Whitby.
The family of 15-year-old Andrew Gosden, who was last seen at king's Cross station in London on September 14 2007 - the same day he left the family home in Doncaster, are hoping that his fellow music lovers may be able to supply a clue to his whereabouts.

Dad Kevin is hoping that visitors to Whitby's Goth Festival in April may be able to help in the search and has contacted a charity with links to the organisers to publicise the family's desperate hunt for the youngster.

There have been two possible sightings of Andrew, who was 14 when he went missing, this year.

But Kevin is refusing to raise his hopes too far.

Both sightings were lodged on a Facebook page set up by the family as part of their hunt for Andrew and have been referred to police, who have been asked to check CCTV pictures in connection to sightings.

One of the reports was outside the Natural History Museum, while the other was at a pub in Southend, where CCTV was present.

Dad Kevin, aged 43, of Littlemoor Lane, Balby, Doncaster said: "The sighting outside the Natural History Museum was from a guy who said he looked taller than Andrew was, had longer hair, long black hair, and looked a bit gothy. Andrew could have grown and grown his hair since we last saw him, and it seemed quite an intelligent sighting from that point of view.

"But we've had a number of sightings in the last year and a half, so I'm not holding my breath."

The family plans to mark 18 months since Andrew went missing on March 14 with a day of prayer and fasting for missing children at their parish church, St James' in Doncaster.

The church will be open to anyone between 6pm and 8pm and will have displays from the main charities involved with missing people, with information, prayer areas and videos. The idea is that people can come and go during that time as they please.

Meanwhile, they are stepping up the search. Last year Kevin e-mailed every school in the country with details of Andrew. He had contacted around two thirds of the country's secondary schools from local authority lists, when a commercial organisation was told what he was doing, and offered free use of its database to contact every school in the country for free. Normally it charges £500.

Many have e-mailed back promising to circulate information or put up a poster.

Now he is moving on to contact all the museums in the country, and goth websites.

He says Andrew was keen on visiting museums, and believes it is likely that his music taste will remain as it was, which would link him to the goth sites.

He hopes to contact organisations which will be involved in the goth festival which is held in Whitby.

"There is a goth weekend held in Whitby in April. I thought I would e-mail a charity, who have contacts with the people who organise the event.

That's so sad. I'm going to go see if I can find anymore info on this. I just wonder if there's anything as to if he just up and went missing, like someone took him or he left on his own accord. I know it's important to find him either way, but it just maybe more difficult if it was because he wanted to leave.

I hope he's ok though. And will add him to my list of those that need extra caring thoughts. It's just horrible to wonder where he might be and if he's alright.

That's true Cyn. HE could have ran away, which I hope happened because that's better than being held against your will.

I hope some type of word is given to the Gosden family about their son. Even if its an " Mom, Dad I am o.k. and I love you." Its sad now days when kids go missing like that even if they do run away. I will be keeping this family in my thoughts and hoping they do get some good news on their missing son.

[ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/south_yorkshire/7692363.stm ]

I found this so far. And there are youtubes as well as a facebook made in order to try to find him. Anything can happen though regardless if he did run away or not. From that moment he left til the day they find him, there is still reason for cause, concern and help needed in finding him.
You always wonder why though.

How much money would that be US that that he took out of his bank account?

I'm editing this in. I just now found this article :

[ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/south_yorkshire/7007006.stm ]

They ever check the kid's computer? He would have been researching this trip before he went. And that 200 pounds, that's probably trip money and snack money. I'd say that he was meeting someone in London. Probably living with them.

I cant imagine how frantic his family must be.

I hope that he just took himself off and that nothing bad has happened to him (Mr D frequently followed the Clash around the country at the same age and didnt tell anyone) but it only takes a phone call or a text to let the family know he's safe and well

I would literally die if one of my girls did that