A woman who vanished in 1972 has finally been found after it took police 52 years to release a photo of her.
Sheila Fox mysteriously disappeared from Coventry city centre when she was just 16 amid suspicions she may have been in a relationship with an older man.
West Midlands Police reported at the time that she had been living with her parents and kept an ‘open mind’ with regard to her whereabouts.
They hoped for a long time that Ms Fox may have simply moved out of the area and not told anyone.
But no trace was found for decades and it was only after a re-appeal was launched last week that there was a sudden change in fortune.
It took just a single photo dug out by police for Ms Fox to finally be found after all this time.
Officials confirmed today that Ms Fox, now 68, had been located and spoken to in another part of the country.
A West Midlands Police spokesman said: ‘We are delighted to announce the conclusion of one of West Midlands Police’s longest-running missing person investigations.
‘We recently published a renewed appeal to help find Sheila Fox, who went missing from Coventry in 1972.
‘A single photo of Sheila from around the time of her disappearance was found by officers investigating and published on our website and social media.
‘Within hours of the appeal, members of the public got in touch with information which led the team to her.
‘Sheila was confirmed to be safe and well and living in another part of the country, finally resolving one of the longest running missing person cases we have investigated.’
