Dad’s search for the truth about his missing son
MOST fathers would be marking their son’s birthday with cake, presents or a birthday tipple, but for Alan Vaughan it’s another day without his boy.
Kyle Vaughan, from Newbridge, disappeared in 2012 at the age of 24 after his smashed-up Peugeot 306 was found on the A467 between Risca and Crosskeys on December 30.
Despite numerous appeals from Kyle’s family and an ongoing police investigation, no trace of Kyle has been found, and what happened to him that night remains an unexplained mystery.
His mother Mary died in 2018 from cancer, going to her grave without knowing what happened to her precious son.
On what should have been Kyle’s 31st birthday on Saturday, August 3, Alan went to visit Mary’s grave at St Mary’s Church in Newport and reminisced with her about their music-loving son.
It is Alan’s belief that his son was murdered, and he has vowed to keep on fighting to find out the truth and bring those responsible to justice.
This month 10,000 Crimestoppers leaflets appealing for information about Kyle’s disappearance were delivered by Alan to Newbridge, Pantside, Cwmcarn and Blackwood in the hope that someone will come forward with an answer to the mystery.
Alan, 59, of Croesyceiliog, Cwmbran, said: “I wanted to let people know I am not going away and Kyle is not going away until his body is found.
“By putting out these hoping to get some news.
“Mary went to her grave with a broken heart and I feel so sorry for her because I couldn’t get her son back to her before she died.
“As a parent you’re always trying to protect your kids, but without a body I can’t grieve for him.
“Mary was having to fight on both fronts, having lost her son and dying from cancer.
“We knew she was going to lose the battle with cancer, but we won’t lose the battle of finding Kyle.
“Me and Mary were not able to have grandchildren together, and that hurts. I have grandchildren from my first marriage, but not through Kyle and not with Mary.”
In 2013, three people were arrested on suspicion of Kyle’s murder, two were arrested on suspicion of assisting an offender and three were arrested on suspicion of perverting the course of justice, but all have since been released without charge.
In 2016, former Cwmcarn High School pupil Kyle, known to his friends as “Jabbers”, was presumed legally dead by a High Court judge, and his parents received a presumption of death certificate.
On how he spent Kyle’s birthday, Alan leaflets we’re said: “I went up the cemetery to put flowers on Kyle’s and Mary’s headstone.
“I just sat there looking at Facebook, sharing posts and reading messages from a lot of people who said they hoped I would get some answers and sharing the leaflets on social media.
“A lot of people said they were going to raise a glass to Kyle and I raised a couple myself.
“I just sat there feeling really depressed with myself, just hoping for a phone call with new information. I’m still suspended in mid-air not knowing whether the leaflets have worked because nobody is telling me anything.”
At the time of his disappearance, Kyle, a rock music fan, was working for Unilever in production technology.
Alan said: “I’m still here and I’m still grieving, trying to find where my son’s body is, but without someone giving me a call or the police doing something, it’s not going to happen.
“I need to bury him and let Mary be content with her son.
“To find him would be better than winning the lottery, it would be a massive relief, but it would also be a sad time. I have gone through enough pain over the last seven years, but I couldn’t put it into words what it would mean to me.
“I want to get whoever is responsible convicted and for them to spend the rest of their lives in prison.”
A Gwent Police spokesman said: “This is still an ongoing investigation. However, due to the family wishes, all proactive publicity has been stopped.
“We would encourage anyone with information relating to the disappearance of Kyle to contact us by calling 101 or by sending a direct message to our Gwent Police Facebook and Twitter social media pages.”