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BROTHER'S PAIN

Who is Suzy Lamplugh’s brother Richard?

FOR 35 years, Richard Lamplugh has lived with the unsolved disappearance of his beloved sister, Suzy.

His family still don't have any clue how and why the estate agent disappeared one Monday in 1986.

Estate agent Suzy Lamplugh went missing after leaving her office for a house viewing in July 1986
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Estate agent Suzy Lamplugh went missing after leaving her office for a house viewing in July 1986Credit: Rex Features

Who is Suzy Lamplugh's brother Richard?

Aged just 25, estate agent Suzy Lamplugh walked out of her Fulham office for a house viewing on July 28, 1986, and never returned.

Her car was later discovered abandoned in Stevenage Road - about a mile from the viewing in Shorrolds Road - unlocked, with the handbrake off and her purse in the door pocket.

He was 26 and working on a fish farm in Hertfordshire when his sister disappeared.

Richard, now 61, lives in Aberdeen with his wife Christine and their daughters.

Richard Lamplugh, now 61, is Suzy's older brother by a year
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Richard Lamplugh, now 61, is Suzy's older brother by a yearCredit: Rex Features

What has Richard Lamplugh said about his sister?

Seven years after Suzy disappeared, she was declared dead, thought to be murdered - but her body has never been found.

Suzy's appointment book revealed she had been due to meet a 'Mr Kipper' when she vanished, sparking one of the biggest investigations in British history.

The lead suspect in the case is a criminal named John Cannan, who is currently in jail for another murder.

His BMW matched the description of the one seen by a witness on the day Suzy vanished.

Suzy was once on the front page of every paper - but she was never found and her body has not been recovered
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Suzy was once on the front page of every paper - but she was never found and her body has not been recoveredCredit: News Group Newspapers Ltd

The name 'Mr Kipper' was also linked to Cannan, who was discharged from a prison hostel just three days before Suzy's disappearance, after serving five years for rape.

Fellow prisoners at the hostel told police they called him “Kipper” because he loved fish for breakfast and spent much of the day asleep.

Although he has always denied any involvement in Suzy's disappearance, police made the unusual move of naming Cannan as the prime suspect in 2002.

Speaking to The Sun, Richard said: "It’s never going to bring Suze back, but if the police had arrested Cannan (when Suzy disappeared), then others wouldn’t have been in the same situation as my sister.

Richard, left, and Suzy, second left, pictured with their younger sisters Tamsin and Lizzie
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Richard, left, and Suzy, second left, pictured with their younger sisters Tamsin and LizzieCredit: Rex Features

"They could have got him first, but you can never turn the clock back, it’s just ‘what if?’

"You are powerless when you’ve lost someone like this. The person who has taken them away has you in their power.

"I’m sure they revel in the fact they haven’t been found out.

";That’s the thing I’m very upset about, that he wasn’t caught after he abducted my sister and murdered her, if he did.

"If he’d been caught then, others wouldn’t have gone through the ordeals he put their families through, the crimes he’s inside for now."

John Cannan, who's currently in jail for rape and murder, is the prime suspect in Suzy's disappearance
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John Cannan, who's currently in jail for rape and murder, is the prime suspect in Suzy's disappearanceCredit: Rex Features

Richard told us: "When we had the memorial service, which was quite well publicised, I looked down the aisle, thinking ‘she might just walk in’.

"But when she didn’t, I knew she was never going to come back.

"The hardest part of it all was coming to terms with her death. Also that my mum and dad never saw closure."

Richard's parents passed away never knowing what happened to their daughter.

Richard and his sisters still hope some of their questions will be answered.

Suzy was declared dead, presumed murdered, in 1994
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Suzy was declared dead, presumed murdered, in 1994Credit: PA:Press Association

He explained: "We’ve all moved on in our lives, we've had families and settled down. But it would be nice to have some sort of closure.

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"Unfortunately we haven’t got enough information to say Cannan’s definitely done it, he won’t tell us he’s done it and that’s a big problem as far as charging him for her murder.

"It’s never going to bring Suze back, but I’d like him to be kept in jail so he’s never let out."

Suzy Lamplugh murder suspect John Cannan says he has a right to protect his own legal position as he refuses to answer questions from police
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