Claudia Lawrence was a 35yo chef who lived in Heworth, a suburb of York in the north of England. She lived alone, and worked in the canteen of the University of York. She was close to her family and active socially, frequenting the local pub The Nag's Head.

She was last seen near her home on the 18th March. During that evening she spoke to her mother on the phone, and held a text conversation with a friend in Cyprus. That was her last known contact. She was reported missing on the 19th March, after failing to arrive for work. Police believe she left for work on the 19th, as she had made her bed and left breakfast dishes in the sink. A rucksack containing her work uniform has never been found. Her passport and bank cards were located in her home.

Her car was being repaired at the time of her disappearance, and she had been walking to work.

CCTV cameras captured the rear of her property, and a man was seen shortly before her last call with her parents. You can view this footage here. In the video, a man walks towards the rear of her house, then reappears one minute later carrying a rucksack over his shoulder. Someone crosses the road in front of him, and he stops dead, waiting for them to walk on, before he continues. This man has never been identified.

Her mobile phone is turned off around midday on the 19th March, and police don't believe it left the area of her home during that time. Her mobile location data was investigated by police, and her whereabouts traced and verified, with the exception of a substantial amount of time she spent in the York suburb of Acomb a few weeks before her disappearance.

Claudia appears to have lead a complicated life, and her social connections have been intensively investigated. A total of nine people have been arrested or questioned under caution in relation to her disappearance. Of those nine, files were submitted to the Crown Prosecution Service in 2015 in relation to four of those men, but the CPS decided there was insufficient evidence to warrant a charge, so all of these individuals have been released. DNA from a further male found on a cigarette butt in her car has never been identified.

Police have made some telling statements about this case - for example, "we believe individuals with information refuse to come forward to assist with enquiries in order to protect themselves and their private lives". In the UK media, this has been interpreted as a suggestion that Claudia may have been involved with a married man, or married men. Police have gone as far as to say that they believe people with information are unlikely to come forward unless there is some kind of disagreement between them. They have also said they do not believe a stranger is responsible for her disappearance.

Theories

• Was she abducted on her way to work?

This seems to be the most likely answer - her work uniform has never been found. Had she arranged with someone to get a lift to work?

• Had she planned to escape her "complex" love life?

She had known close ties with Cyprus, and had spoken to friends about finding work as a chef on the island. Her passport being found at her home does make this unlikely.

• Was Christopher Halliwell involved in her disappearance?

Halliwell is a serial murderer currently incarcerated for the murders of Sian o'Callaghan and Becky Godden. He is also suspected of a number of other crimes, particularly the disappearance of Melanie Hall, and he has been suggested as having connections to Linda Razzell, though her husband is currently in prison in relation to her death.

Halliwell's father lived a few streets away from Claudia, and he was known to frequent her local area, including the Nag's Head. He fits the physical description of the man seen on CCTV behind Claudia's home. It would also fit his pattern of abducting women walking alone late at night or early in the morning.

Police have stated that they are "not aware of any evidence linking Claudia with Halliwell" - but could he be involved?

Claudia's Law

In June 2019, the Guardianship (Missing Persons) Act 2017 was introduced into law by the UK government. This is known colloquially as Claudia's Law. It enables family members to act as a guardian of a missing person's affairs after they have been missing for at least 90 days, and allows them the ability to do things like stop direct debits for utility bills.

Further Reading

Wikipedia page

The Guardian - 10 year anniversary article

The Yorkshire Post - theories of her disappearance