Police are probing the mystery disappearance of a terminally ill man who vacated his home in the north of England and told neighbours he was heading for Aberdeen.
The loved ones of Sunderland native John James Richardson, commonly known as Jim or Jimmy, now fear they may never see him alive again given the “out of character” development.
His son Louis Richardson, who also lives in the north-east of England, said he “fears the worst possible outcome” for his 58-year-old father after reporting him missing last month and hearing nothing from him since.
His dad was diagnosed with a terminal heart condition “about a year ago” and was given 12-24 months to live.
His neighbours said that, when he left his home in Sunderland, he told them he was heading to Aberdeen and English police confirmed that was an avenue of investigation they were pursuing.
Mr Richardson jun has now appealed for anyone in the north-east who may have seen his father to come forward.
Mr Richardson said: “His neighbours in Sunderland spotted him loading up a van and they said he told them he was going to Aberdeen.
“Then, 10 days later, he returned for more of his belongings.”
The 58-year-old grandfather of six has “no connections in Aberdeen” and the family say they are at a loss to explain the “out of character behaviour”.
Mr Richardson jun added: “He was on the phone to his brother on June 18 as he normally does every week, and nothing out of the ordinary was discussed then.
“I don’t know why he’d go to Aberdeen.
“With lockdown, I haven’t properly seen him face-to-face in a while. He’s normally only a text or a phone call away if you need him, and we can’t seem to get in touch with him.
“With his illness we’re all really worried about him, the diagnosis came as a massive shock and it brought us closer together.
“We’ve got friends and family with a lot of questions but we currently don’t have any answers for them.”
Mr Richardson sen was reported missing to Northumbria Police on Sunday and inquiries are ongoing to locate him.
A spokeswoman for the force said: “John is described as 5ft 10in with short grey hair, stocky build and tattoos on both arms.
“It is believed John has ties to the Sunderland area but may also be in Aberdeen.”
Police north of the border were contacted by their colleagues in Northumbria on Sunday to see if they could help with the inquiry.
A spokeswoman for Police Scotland said: “We carried out a number of checks on their behalf and the results were passed back to them.”
Police in Northumbria are urging anyone with any information that could help the investigation to contact officers using reference number 617 28/06/20.