Police search for woman missing for 53 years

Police have launched an appeal to find a teenager who went missing exactly 53 years ago.

Bedfordshire Police said there had been no confirmed sightings of Tina Whittamore, born Tina King, since she went for a walk in Luton on May 31, 1971, aged 15.

Detectives know she moved to High Wycombe at some point and it is believed she may have been treated at a London hospital in 1990.

The force created a picture of what Ms Whittamore, who originally lived in Kempston and would now be 68, might look like today.

She was born in Leighton Buzzard in 1955 and was placed in Luton Whitaker's mother and baby unit in 1971.

Police said the teenager, 5ft 1in tall, with light brown hair and brown eyes, was last officially seen around 2:30pm on May 31.

However, in September that year, Thames Valley Police issued a missing person's report regarding a woman called Christine King, 18, who had gone missing from High Wycombe.

It was later established that she and Ms Whittamore were the same person.

'We never give up'

Detectives found information suggesting she had lived and worked in Soho and Notting Hill, London, in the 1970s.

The Metropolitan Police believed she was in a London hospital in 1990, but were unable to confirm her identity before she was discharged herself.

In 1991, she was reported to be sleeping rough in the Notting Hill area, but no sightings have been recorded since.

Bedfordshire Police said she could be identified by a slight squint in her left eye and was known to dye it blonde and wear a wig.

Detective Sergeant James Morgan, of the force, said: “We realize this is a case that dates back many years, but we never give up in our efforts to trace people missing.

“Cases like these are reviewed on an ongoing basis and are reopened if new information is shared with us. We would just like to know that Tina is safe.

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