Disappearance of Louise Kerton

Louise Kerton is a British woman from Broadstairs, Kent who went missing in Germany in July 2001. At the time of her disappearance she was a student nurse.

Louise Kerton
Born (1976-01-06) January 6, 1976
Perth, Canada
DisappearedJuly 30, 2001
Aachen Hauptbahnhof, Aachen, Germany
StatusMissing for 20 years, 8 months and 18 days
NationalityBritish
Parents
  • Phil Kerton (father)
  • Kathleen Kerton (mother)

Background

Louise Kerton, the daughter of Phil and Kathleen Kerton, had four siblings, a younger sister, two older sisters and an older brother.[1][2] She was born prematurely at 27 weeks and spent 8 to 10 weeks in an incubator.[2] She had an artistic side and teachers were puzzled that she was attentive but had difficulty presenting work, describing it as a mess.[2] She was diagnosed with dyslexia.[2] She had attended the same school as Lucie Blackman and was friendly with her.[2]

She was living with her boyfriend Peter Simon in Broadstairs at the time of her disappearance.[2]

Disappearance

She spent five weeks with Peter's family in Straßfeld near Bonn after failing nursing exams.[2] Peter had travelled to the UK two days before she was to pick up some building materials.[2] Peter's mother Ramona said she had dropped her off at Aachen Hauptbahnhof on 30 July 2001.[2] Louise had planned to take a train to Ostend and then travel to Dover.[2]

Investigation

German police treated her disappearance as routine - they received unconfirmed reports that she was living in a hostel for the homeless in Aachen.[3]

Her father believes that authorities were slow to act as she was 24 and therefore considered an adult.[2] He said her disappearance was out of character.[2]

In late 2001 her family hired Bob Moffatt, a former Scotland Yard Superintendent as a private investigator.[2] They have also hired Dai Davies, a former head of royal protection.[2] Moffatt and her family have criticised the Simon family for failing to cooperate with police and for alleged inconsistencies in their statements.[2] The Simon family deny her disappearance has anything to do with them.[2]

Police found photos on film in her camera at Peter's home in Germany.[3] When developed they showed scenes that police believe had been photographed in a village in Bad Zwischenahn.[3]

As of late 2010 or early 2011 German police had closed the case.[4]

Her mother died of stomach cancer in 2011.[2]

The Simon family have moved out of Straßfeld.[2]

See also

References
  1. Real Lives: Vanished without a trace..; Louise Kerton, 24, disappeared in Germany a year ago, and hasn't been heard of since. Her brother and sisters, angry at German police and her fiance's family for not having made more effort to find her, reveal how they're coping in very different ways., thefreelibrary.com, August 6, 2002
  2. Connolly, Kate (31 July 2021). "Father hopes to reopen case of British woman who disappeared 20 years ago". The Guardian. Retrieved 31 July 2021.
  3. Goodchild, Sophie; Cleaver, Hannah (8 December 2002). "Camera clue to vanished student". The Independent. Retrieved 31 July 2021.
  4. "German police close missing Louise Kerton case". BBC News. 11 July 2011. Retrieved 31 July 2021.
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