Met Police renew appeal for missing Harold Hill teenager Suzanne Lawrence, 45 years on

The Metropolitan Police have reopened the case of Suzanne Lawrence, who vanished aged 14 from Harold Hill in July 1979. Detectives are appealing for witnesses who may have seen her in the days after she left her home with her sister Michelle Hooper, then 13.

Suzanne and Michelle told their mother they would stay with friends in Dagenham on 27 July 1979. They travelled to central London, where they met three boys at a fair in Highbury Fields. The boys took the sisters to a squat, which Michelle later struggled to locate when she accompanied police.

Last known movements

Michelle returned home on 31 July 1979, expecting Suzanne to follow the next morning. When she did not, their mother reported her missing on 2 August. Police at the time believed Suzanne may have joined a travelling fair, but searches failed to find her.

Detective Chief Inspector Kam Sodhi, leading the investigation, said the sisters are believed to have experienced a brief period of homelessness after leaving home. He urged anyone who met them, helped them, or had contact with them in the summer of 1979 to come forward.

Michelle Hooper, now 60, said she thinks about her sister every day. She described the last time she saw Suzanne, saying they had spent time together trying to survive away from home before Michelle returned alone. Their mother, Pauline, then 38, made a public appeal in 1979, saying she would not stop worrying until Suzanne was found.

What police want to know

Detectives are particularly interested in tracing three boys, aged around 14 to 17 in 1979, who met the sisters at Highbury Fields. The boys took them to a squat near Arsenal’s former Highbury Stadium. Police believe these individuals may hold information about Suzanne’s movements after Michelle left.

DCI Sodhi said relationships and circumstances change over time. Information that once seemed unimportant could now help solve the case. He appealed directly to Suzanne, if she is alive, to contact police. Suzanne would now be 61. She was described as white, with dark brown straight hair, around 5’3” to 5’5” tall, and of slim build, with a local Essex accent.

Anyone with information can call 101, quoting reference 01/1106320/24. Crimestoppers can be contacted anonymously on 0800 555 111. The police appeal remains open, with no time limit on when new evidence can be submitted.

What happens next

The Metropolitan Police have not set a deadline for the appeal. Detectives will follow up any new leads, including information about the boys who met the sisters in Highbury or anyone who may have seen Suzanne in the days after 27 July 1979. The case remains under active review by the East Area Missing Persons Unit.