Speaker 1: Hi, and welcome back to the Unseen podcast podcast dedicated
Speaker 1: to missing people, unresolved cases and UK true crime. Today's
Speaker 1: day ten of twelve days of missing person cases throughout December.
Speaker 1: Today we're looking into the disappearance of thirty five year
Speaker 1: old Suneka Hands from Bedford on Boxing Day twenty twelve.
Speaker 1: Her sister and her family have continued to appeal for
Speaker 1: information about her and her possible whereabouts ever since. This
Speaker 1: episode is about a missing person and so does not
Speaker 1: contain any descriptions of violence, but listener discretion is advised.
Speaker 1: Bedford is a market town which is located in Bedfordshire,
Speaker 1: around twenty five miles from Cambridge and around forty six
Speaker 1: miles from London. It's a relatively smar with a population
Speaker 1: of around one hundred and six thousand people. It's known
Speaker 1: for the Great Ooze River which flows through its center
Speaker 1: and several bridges that cross it. In twenty twelve, thirty
Speaker 1: five year old Suneka Hands lived in a flat at
Speaker 1: Priory Court in the center of town. She was living
Speaker 1: with her sister, Menisha and Manisha's husband at that time.
Speaker 1: Sineka and her sister Menisha were originally from India, where
Speaker 1: their mother still lived, but they had relocated to the
Speaker 1: area of Bedford. Sineka was known to be a friendly
Speaker 1: and reliable person who was close to her family. She
Speaker 1: had been working a job at McDonald's and was just
Speaker 1: getting on with her life as far as those that
Speaker 1: knew her were aware. Christmas twenty twelve came around and
Speaker 1: on the twenty sixth, on Boxing Day, Sineka had spent
Speaker 1: the day in the flat with her sister and brother
Speaker 1: in law, as well as running some errands. At around
Speaker 1: eleven forty a m. That morning, Sneka had left the
Speaker 1: flat to go to the local Tesco Metro supermarket on
Speaker 1: Midland Road, just a stone's throw from where she lived.
Speaker 1: It was known that at that point she had bought
Speaker 1: a bottle of vodka and some food. This was later
Speaker 1: confirmed on CCTV from the Tesco. After buying these items,
Speaker 1: she returned back home. At around one thirty pm that afternoon,
Speaker 1: Sineka told her sister that she was going to nip
Speaker 1: out again into the shops. She asked Minisha if she
Speaker 1: wanted anything while she was out, and Minisha said she
Speaker 1: was okay and didn't need anything. Sineka indicated that she
Speaker 1: wouldn't belong and would be back soon. Some reporting indicates
Speaker 1: that when Sneka left the flat that day she was
Speaker 1: with a friend, but not all reporting states this. Sineka
Speaker 1: left the flat and as far as Menisia knew, she
Speaker 1: was popping to the shop for something she might have
Speaker 1: forgotten and would be back soon. This, however, was not
Speaker 1: what happened that day. Sineka never returned to the flat
Speaker 1: and didn't contact her sister. This was extremely unusual, as
Speaker 1: Sneka was very reliable and there was no reason to
Speaker 1: believe that she had gone anywhere other than where she
Speaker 1: said she was going to go. If she had just
Speaker 1: nipped to the shops, where was she and why had
Speaker 1: she not returned? Minishia was worried about her sister, and
Speaker 1: she reported her missing to the police. Sneka was a
Speaker 1: thirty five year old woman who of course could go
Speaker 1: wherever she wanted. However, the fact that she hadn't returned
Speaker 1: back to the place where she was living was strange.
Speaker 1: She had only nipped out to get something from the shop.
Speaker 1: She hadn't taken things with her to be gone for
Speaker 1: a long time. Police began looking into the missing person
Speaker 1: report and found what she had last been seen wearing.
Speaker 1: They were looking for someone who was five feet three
Speaker 1: inches tall with long black hair which had been dyed
Speaker 1: dark brown. She left the home wearing red trousers or leggings,
Speaker 1: a black jumper which was thygh length, and a dark
Speaker 1: blue jacket. Police hope that by issuing this description to
Speaker 1: the public, someone would remember seeing her that day. It
Speaker 1: was Boxing day, which meant that more people may have
Speaker 1: been out and about visiting family and friends or shopping.
Speaker 1: There was the possibility that someone may have recognized her.
Speaker 1: Police were able to track down CCTV from the Tesco
Speaker 1: supermarket earlier on in the day to establish what she
Speaker 1: looked like on that day that she went missing. They
Speaker 1: also worked on trying to find any other CCTV of
Speaker 1: Suneka walking around Bedford Town Center that day. If they
Speaker 1: could figure out her route, then they might be able
Speaker 1: to track down where she had gone. CCTV was found
Speaker 1: of a matching Sineka's description at around two pm, about
Speaker 1: half an hour after she had left home. This person
Speaker 1: was seen visiting a shop near the Swan Hotel in
Speaker 1: the Embankment area of the town. This was located next
Speaker 1: to the Great Ooze River This was very much of
Speaker 1: interest to the police, and while they had not been
Speaker 1: able to say for certain that this was Sineka, it
Speaker 1: gave them a new lead. Officers began searches of the
Speaker 1: local area and police divers searched the Great Ooze River,
Speaker 1: given that the CCTV image of this person who matched
Speaker 1: the description was seen close to it. Despite these extensive
Speaker 1: searches of the local area and the river, no sign
Speaker 1: of Sineka has been found. It was as though she
Speaker 1: left her home and vanished completely. Police made appeals in
Speaker 1: the months and years following her disappear apearance, and each
Speaker 1: time they hoped that something would strike a chord with
Speaker 1: the public and someone would remember something crucial. Bedfordshire Police
Speaker 1: also made some financial inquiries to see if this would
Speaker 1: yield any leeds. It unfortunately did not, and Sineka did
Speaker 1: not make any contact with anybody she knew during this time.
Speaker 1: In the years that followed, Sneka's case has been highlighted,
Speaker 1: particularly during the festive season, as this was the time
Speaker 1: of year that she disappeared. This is always helpful. However,
Speaker 1: there has not been much more information released about the
Speaker 1: case or any updates that there might be In twenty
Speaker 1: twenty one, police released two new images of Sineka once
Speaker 1: again to help anyone who might have seen her come forward.
Speaker 1: Sineka's family have had to live with her disappearance for
Speaker 1: these years, and in twenty twenty two, on the ten
Speaker 1: year anniversary of her disappearance, Manisha spoke to the press
Speaker 1: about this. She said, celebrations have never been the same
Speaker 1: and my sister's presence has always been missed. I have
Speaker 1: never given up hope and I never ever will. I
Speaker 1: will continue to pray she returns to us safely. Sneka's
Speaker 1: mom passed away just a year after her disappearance and
Speaker 1: so she didn't receive the answers that she's so needed.
Speaker 1: Bedfordshire Police have continued to appeal for information and have
Speaker 1: been dedicated to finding out where Sneka is despite the
Speaker 1: lack of information and evidence available. Detective Inspector Catherine Rivers
Speaker 1: from the Forces Missing Persons Investigation Team said, as we
Speaker 1: celebrate this festive season, it's important to remember there are
Speaker 1: families who have lost those who are missing. On the
Speaker 1: tenth anniversary of Sneka's disappearance, her family has decided to
Speaker 1: issue a heartfelt statement that will strike a card with
Speaker 1: many people here in Bedfordshire and in the hope that
Speaker 1: someone who knows something will come forward. We will never
Speaker 1: close a missing person case and will follow any new
Speaker 1: lines of inquiry to locate Sineka or establish what has happened.
Speaker 1: Detective Chief Inspector Julia Everett, who had been reviewing the case,
Speaker 1: has also stated Sneka's behavior in just disappearing is totally
Speaker 1: out of character for her. She was a reliable employee
Speaker 1: at MacDonald's and no one has any concrete reason why
Speaker 1: she would disappear or harm herself or be harmed by
Speaker 1: someone else. If you have information about Sneka, however small
Speaker 1: or insignificant you think it is, please call us. Don't
Speaker 1: leave it to someone else or assume it's not important.
Speaker 1: It's possible that Sineka is perfectly well but decided to
Speaker 1: leave her life in Bedford behind, preferring not to tell
Speaker 1: people where she is. We can respect that decision and
Speaker 1: those details can be kept confidential to the police. So
Speaker 1: if you know where she is, or Sneka herself sees
Speaker 1: our appeal, please just phone us direct or drop into
Speaker 1: your nearest police station and let us know you're Okay.
Speaker 1: Given the last potential sighting of her near the swan,
Speaker 1: it's possible she may have fallen in the water, but
Speaker 1: we have to keep an open mind. We're revisiting the
Speaker 1: case because things do change all the time, new advances
Speaker 1: in technology, new information, or some tiny detail we may
Speaker 1: have missed that can be revealed with a fresh look
Speaker 1: or what we know. If you know anything about Sneka
Speaker 1: Hans's disappearance, then please contact Bedfordshire Police online or by
Speaker 1: calling one oh one quoting MPC forward slash four six
Speaker 1: five forward slash one two. I will leave the link
Speaker 1: in the show notes. Thank you for listening to today's episode.
Speaker 1: Listen in to day eleven, where we will cover another
Speaker 1: missing or unidentified person case. If you'd like to support
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Speaker 1: I'm Caprice and this has been unseen