Kevin Hicks

Age at disappearance: 16

Kevin has been missing from Croydon, Surrey since 2 March 1986.

On the day of his disappearance Kevin popped out to the shops to buy some ingredients for his cookery exam the following day. He has not been seen since. Although many years have passed, Kevin’s family have never given up hope of seeing him again.

At the time of his disappearance Kevin was a tall, slim teenager, with light brown hair and hazel blue eyes. The night he went missing Kevin was wearing a red, white and black Lacoste Bomber Jacket, dark blue jeans and Hi-Tec trainers.

Kevin Hicks - Age progression:



Kevin Hicks was 16 when he popped out to buy some eggs from the local shops one bitterly cold evening. He never returned home. That was in March 1986 – 21 years ago. He is now aged 37; the age progression pic shows him at 33.

It is the ordinariness of the situations leading up to many disappearances that I find so harrowing. Kevin had earlier enjoyed a Sunday lunch with his family and even helped his dad wash up afterwards at their home in Addiscombe, Croydon. He later popped out to buy the eggs which he needed for a school exam the next day.

His disappearance has been featured on Crimewatch and extensive police searches have failed to come up with any leads. Every Christmas, Kevin’s father hopes that his son will return. He has never given up hope of being reunited.

Tragically, Kevin’s mother died of a brain tumour at the age of 42 in October 1994, having just made a television appeal for news about her son. Derek still lives in the house Kevin grew up in after his wife asked him never to move away.

In memory of those who are still missing.

By Ellee Seymour
MCIPR, PRESS CONSULTANT, JOURNALIST, POLITICAL AND PR BLOGGER.

Never-ending search for missing family members

12:53pm Wednesday 18th December 2002

By Angeline Albert »




Derek Hicks still believes Christmas Day could be the day his son Kevin returns home but so far he has watched 16 years go by without a trace of the teenager who left home to buy eggs.

Sixteen-year-old Kevin Hicks had sat down to have Sunday lunch with his family and even helped his dad wash up afterwards at their home in Sissinghurst Road, Addiscombe on March 2, 1986.

At 8pm, Kevin told his mother he needed some eggs for a GCSE Home Economics exam the next day and left his house to go to Lower Addiscombe Road's 7 Eleven but was never seen again.

Derek Hicks returned home from an emergency at work at 9pm but when Kevin still was not back at 11pm, he drove around looking for him.

Mr Hicks, 57, said: "If he was going to be late, he'd always phone home. I started phoning up his friends then I phoned the police."

At 1am Derek was standing in South Norwood Police station and the next morning the police visited John Ruskin School to interview his friends.

In the weeks to come, finger-tip searches were carried out at nearby parks, railway stations and Shirley Hills but not a trace of Kevin was found.

Mr Hicks said: "I would be out looking for him but I didn't know where to look, so I'd just look anywhere."

Kevin's disappearance was aired on CrimeWatch in May 1986 and another CrimeWatch appearance was scheduled for July but was pulled when Susie Lamplugh went missing.

Kevin's mother Terry began making contact with Susie Lamplugh's mother Diana, who went on to set up the Susie Lamplugh Trust which later became the National Missing Person's Helpline.

Weeks turned to months and months to years.

"CrimeWatch led to sightings in Birmingham, Glasgow and Edinburgh and initially we drove to places to look for him but we soon settled down realising the number of sightings couldn't all be him," explained Derek.

In September 1988, 15-year-old Lee Boxall went missing from Sutton and Lee's mother Christine and Terry Hicks were able to lean on each other for support.

Kevin's mother died of a brain tumour at the age of 42 in October 1994, having just made a television appeal for news about her son. Derek still lives in the house Kevin grew up in after his wife asked him never to move away.

"The first Christmas was hard but we celebrated it because we had a daughter to think about."

Christmas and the new year is followed by Kevin's birthday on February 9 and the anniversary of his disappearance in March.

Derek's daughter Alex, whose birthday is the day before Kevin's birthday, has since had a family of her own but Derek says she is very protective of her two daughters aged nine and 12.

He said: "Even today when I was on the way to this interview, I was looking along the road at the people to see if any of them might be Kevin. Not knowing is worse than news of his death."

The national missing person's helpline has a photo of Kevin artificially aged to depict him as a 32-year-old. The police file into Kevin's disappearance remains open and anyone with information can call investigators on 020 8649 0132.

Derek Hicks holds up a school picture of his son Kevin taken a week before his disappearance.

2:15pm Wednesday 13th April 2011




Last month News Shopper ran an appeal for information to find a schoolboy who went missing 25 years ago. DAVID MILLS spoke to charity Missing People about keeping the search alive.

At 8.40pm on March 2 in 1986, Kevin Hicks, aged 16, popped out to the corner shop to buy some eggs for a cookery exam he was due to take the next day.

He never came home and his disappearance left his family baffled.

His parents Terry and Derek have since died, leaving Kevin’s grandmother Dorothy to carry on the search.

The 89-year-old, of Sycamore Close, Mottingham, says it is her dying wish to find out what happened to her grandson.

Keeping search alive for schoolboy who went missing 25 years ago

Missing People offers a lineline for people who go missing, providing specialised support to ease the heartache and confusion felt by families and loved ones left behind and to help the search for those missing.

The charity's director of services, Jo Youle, told News Shopper the case is “more unusual” given the length of time Kevin has been missing and that keeping it in the media spotlight is crucial.

Ms Youle said: “It’s hugely concerning and absolutely horrendous for families trying to cope with this situation.

“Keeping the search alive is absolutely key.

“For a family to think their son’s been forgotten is more horrendous. There’s always an element of hope they will come back.”

She added: “Having someone missing for so long, families say it gets harder with time.

“It’s about coping with having no answers.

“It’s human nature to want answers and explanations. We recognise that with families and support them.

“It’s about being there for them, being there at 4am. We campaign as an organisation because we feel not enough is being done for families.

“If your house is burgled, you’re automatically offered help and legal support.

“But if your child goes missing there’s nothing at all. We feel that’s an injustice.”

Anyone with any information about Kevin’s disappearance should call Missing People on 0500 700 700.

The charity is currently collecting messages of support for families of missing people on its wall of reminders page at missingpeople.org.uk/wallofreminders
KEVIN’S DISAPPEARANCE

Kevin lived in Sissinghurst Road, Addiscombe.

He left home on a cold night wearing only jeans and a t-shirt to go to Lower Addiscombe Road’s 7-Eleven.

Kevin, who would now be 41, was a happy teenager with no problems at school.

He had applied for jobs which he was offered interviews for after he had gone missing.

Keeping search alive for schoolboy who went missing 25 years ago

A police investigation, door-to-door enquiries and an appeal on Crimewatch failed to generate any solid leads leaving his family clueless as to what had happened to him.

CCTV from the shop was not working and staff could not remember seeing Kevin.

In a fresh appeal last month, his grandmother Dorothy said the last 25 years had been “dreadful”.

She said: “You just can’t put it out of your mind.

“God forbid if anything had happened, but it’s better to know than not to know.”

http://www.newsshopper.co.uk/news/8971492.Keeping_search_alive_for_schoolboy_who_went_missing_25_years_ago/