Woman who disappeared without a trace 52 years ago found alive and well after major new discovery

A blurry photograph helped police track down a woman who had been missing for over 50 years.

In 1972, Sheila Fox, from Coventry, UK, went missing without a trace.

Her disappearance went on to become one of the West Midlands' longest missing person cases - but a recent renewed appeal to help police locate the missing woman proved successful.

A single, blurry photograph of Sheila was posted on social media, and shortly after members of the public reached out the law enforcement with information about the woman's whereabouts.

The intel proved useful, and police have now tracked down Sheila after 52 years.

She was found to be alive and well, and is living in another part of England.

Discussing the case being solved, Detective Sergeant Jenna Shaw from the West Midland Police's Cold Case Investigation Team said: "We're absolutely delighted to have found Sheila after more than five decades."

Det Sgt Shaw continued: "We searched through every piece of evidence we could find and managed to locate a photo of Sheila.

"We are a small team of officers and I'd like to recognise the work of DC Shaun Reeve, who managed to resolve this case with help from the public.

"Every missing person has a story, and their families and friends deserve to know what happened to them and, hopefully, be reunited with them."

Police shared a blurry photograph of Sheila Fox on social media (West Midlands Police)

The Cold Case Investigation Team 'reviews and re-investigates the longes, most complex and protracted missing episodes' which have never been solved.

With the help of new and improved technology and forensics, the team was able to pursue leads that weren't available at the time the case was first reported - Sheila's disappearance being a prime example.

One thing that has proven useful to police in recent years is Google Maps, with the online GPS having helped law enforcement in Andenne, Belgium, track down a woman with Alzheimer's who disappeared in 2020.

Paulette Landrieux was last seen in her home and went missing while her husband, who was her primary carer, was hanging out laundry.

Paulette Landrieux's husband was hanging out laundry when she wondered off (Google Maps)

A search party was quickly launched in the hopes of finding Paulette, but two years after her disappearance, she was still to be found.

It was in 2022 that a neighbor was looking at Google Maps' Street View that they saw an image of Paulette walking into the garden of the house across the street from hers.

Police then renewed their search, and the elderly woman was located at the bottom of a hill right below her neighbor's garden.

Investigators concluded she'd fallen from an open section of the garden and tragically died shortly after.

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