A Southampton man has been rearrested in connection with the death of a missing mother, Joanne Sheen, after human remains discovered in London were confirmed to be hers. The 56-year-old was taken into custody on suspicion of conspiracy to commit murder, while a second man, also aged 56, was arrested on suspicion of murder and subsequently released on bail.
Sheen, who was 44 at the time, disappeared after traveling from Fareham to Southampton with a companion on December 5, 2019. Her family reported her missing in February 2020. Police investigations that followed generated over 4,000 lines of inquiry, more than 300 statements, and extensive searches across ten different locations.
The breakthrough occurred in London on August 12, when Metropolitan Police officers were called to Padstow Walk in Feltham. Human remains had been discovered by a member of the public in shrubland that had been damaged by a fire the previous week. The fire at Bedfont Pits, attended by the London Fire Brigade on August 5, had affected approximately two hectares of land.
Detectives in London transferred the investigation to Hampshire Police following the identification of the remains. It is noted that Sheen had no fixed residence, did not own a vehicle, and held no bank account.
The man who was originally arrested in 2020 has been released on conditional bail. This marks a significant development in a case that saw multiple arrests for conspiracy to murder in 2020, though no charges were filed at that time, leaving the investigation unsolved until the recent discovery of the remains.
She had no bank account or vehicle, yet traveled across counties. How did she disappear without a trace for years?
Wait, he was arrested in 2020 and bailed, only to be rearrested now? Does this mean new evidence emerged or just the remains identification?
This is absolutely heartbreaking. Years of uncertainty for her family before even finding out what happened to her.