Katrice Lee: Former serviceman released without charge
Katrice Lee disappeared from a supermarket near a British Army base in Germany 38 years ago. …
Image copyright Family Photo A former serviceman who was arrested in connection with a toddler who went missing in Germany 38 years ago has been released without charge.
Katrice Lee, from Hartlepool, disappeared from a supermarket near a British army base in Paderborn in 1981.
Royal Military Police said an arrest had been made in the Swindon area on Monday.
The man has now been released without charge. Police continue to search an address in Swindon.
An Army spokesperson said: “The Royal Military Police are keeping the Lee family informed of developments”.
Katrice was with her mother at a Naafi supermarket when she vanished.
In 2012, Royal Military Police chiefs admitted mistakes were made during the initial investigation into her disappearance, and in 2017 the government agreed to review the case.
A year later, the Royal Military Police undertook a forensic search on the bank of the River Alme, near where she went missing.
The river site was identified after the release of an age-progressed photo-fit of a man seen at the Naafi holding a child similar to Katrice.
Katrice’s father Richard Lee had earlier described the arrest of the man as a “bombshell”.
He said: “I hear other cases getting answers and [wonder] why can’t I get answers on my case?
“Over the years I’ve become angry, I’ve become jealous and the reason I’ve become angry is because [the police] didn’t do as they should have.
“The reason I get jealous is because other people have had a happy ending. I haven’t and hopefully this time around I’ll get the answers.”
The former sergeant major added: “When I look back at 1981 I never gave up then, and I haven’t given up now.”
About The Author
