It has been 35 long and agonising years since Lee Boxell, just 15 years old at the time, left his home in Sutton to go shopping on September 10, 1988. On that fateful day, he met with a friend, and their paths diverged at around 13:00. The last confirmed sighting of Lee was at Sutton High Street, around 14:20. Since then, there have been no other confirmed sightings of him.
For Lee’s parents, every day since 1988 has been marked by the excruciating uncertainty of not knowing what happened to their beloved son. They now seek answers and hope for the opportunity to provide him with a proper burial, even if it means facing the heartbreaking possibility that he may no longer be alive.
Detective Chief Inspector Kate Blackburn, leading the investigation, shared, “While we don’t have conclusive evidence that Lee came to harm, with no sightings or credible information in 35 years, we sadly believe that Lee is no longer alive.” She continued, “Lee was a boy with a very happy family life. He was a good student who loved football. The story that he had run away, started a new life, and was living under an assumed name was absolutely not viable.”
Over the decades, investigators have interviewed multiple individuals believed to have been involved in or had knowledge of Lee’s disappearance. However, those individuals provided conflicting accounts, leaving Lee’s whereabouts a persistent mystery.
One intriguing lead came from an eighty-year-old man, now deceased, who claimed to have “helped Lee get away” and suggested that Lee was living under an assumed name away from his family. This lead was investigated but found to lack credibility. The same source, along with associates, claimed to have seen Lee a year later, prompting an extensive archaeological dig at St Dunstan’s churchyard in Cheam—the largest ever conducted by the Met. Regrettably, Lee was not found, leaving his parents with an unrelenting hope to locate him.
Lee’s movements on the day he vanished have undergone exhaustive review during the ongoing investigation. Information has led officers to believe that Lee visited an unofficial youth club at St Dunstan’s Church, known locally as ‘The Shed.’ Many local children and teenagers frequented ‘The Shed,’ and these individuals, now adults, may hold vital information that they haven’t shared in the past.
DCI Blackburn expressed her hope that someone who previously felt unable to come forward might now be willing to share any information they have. She emphasised that finding Lee is the current priority, allowing him to be returned to his parents and affording them the answers they’ve been yearning for.
Peter and Christine Boxell, Lee’s parents, are desperately seeking closure and the chance to say goodbye to their beloved son. Peter Boxell urged anyone with information to come forward, saying, “If you know where he may be, or have any information about what happened to Lee, please contact the police Investigation team on 0208721 4005 or if you prefer, you can tell the charity Crimestoppers what you know, anonymously.”
Crimestoppers has offered a reward of £20,000 for information leading to the recovery of Lee’s remains. To be eligible for the reward, the information must be provided directly to the independent charity Crimestoppers, not through the police. This substantial reward serves as an incentive for anyone with pertinent information to step forward and help end the years of pain endured by Lee’s family.
