Aaliyah Chen: Family criticise Met Police over search for missing teenager

Aaliyah Chen, 15, went missing on Sunday evening

Aaliyah Chen, 15, has been missing since Sunday evening (Metropolitan Police)

The family of a missing teenager have accused the Metropolitan Police of acting incompetently during their search for the schoolgirl.

Aaliyah Chen, 15, went missing on Sunday evening after leaving through a window in her family home in Sidcup, south London, wearing black baggy trousers, a khaki top, and a black coat with beige trimming. Aaliyah is believed to be with a 24-year-old man, who allegedly groomed her via social media app Snapchat and was served with a child abduction warning notice in July in respect of his previous interactions with Aaliyah.

Aaliyah’s family claim that the police have mishandled the case due to their failure to quickly investigate an address in Brixton where Aaliyah is believed to have been following her disappearance and which is closely linked with the man in question. They also felt that the case was incorrectly classified by the police as medium risk before the designation was changed to high risk.

In an appeal in The Guardian, Aaliyah’s aunt, Laura Rushe, said: “The first 36 hours felt like they were wasted. Information we provided was not given to the search team.”

Aaliyah’s mother, Obaida Chen, pleaded with her daughter to come home in the appeal: “Aaliyah, please come home if you see this,” she said. “We love you and miss you, you are not in any trouble at all. I just wish the police had acted earlier.”

The family contacted The Guardian after learning more about Richard Okorogheye, another young person who went missing and was later found dead, whose case is under investigation by the police watchdog due to alleged errors made by the Met.

Prior to Aaliyah’s disappearance, her family found that she had been in contact with the man in question for four months, and he was even arrested by police in February though he was not charged. In May, Aaliyah’s phone was returned following an investigation, and in July, the man was served with a child abduction warning notice following continued contact between him and Aaliyah.

The day before Aaliyah’s disappearance, the 15-year-old was taken to hospital after her mother discovered her diary, which included details of Aaliyah’s meetings with the man in question during school holidays as well as plans to leave home, including how to cope with little food. The family called the police and the diary was taken by the Met. Shortly after that, a suicide note was discovered on Aaliyah’s phone. Aaliyah was hospitalised, but she was discharged the following day. She went missing that evening after kissing her mother goodnight.

Aaliyah is believed to have travelled on the 51 bus across London at around 1am. Her family called the police soon after realising she was gone, and they feel that the Met’s response has been incompetent.

Ms Rushe said: “Their coordination is appalling. One team did not know the other team had [Aaliyah’s] diaries,” adding that she thought the police might have found the pair if they had “gone when they were supposed to”, as Aaliyah is thought to have been at the aforementioned Brixton address while the police were investigating on Monday morning. Aaliyah’s family believe she was groomed following a change in her interests, and that more could have been done to protect the schoolgirl.

In a statement, the Met said: “We are aware of concerns raised by Aaliyah’s family regarding the initial response and ongoing investigation into her disappearance.

“We are conducting a wide range of enquiries to trace Aaliyah. The Met is committed to providing the best possible service to families of missing people, ensuring that they are supported by specialist officers and informed of investigative updates as soon as possible. We are continuing to keep Aaliyah’s family updated on our investigation.”

They have stressed that anyone who sees Aaliyah should call 999 immediately, providing the reference CAD 4086/08Sep. Anyone who has any other information about her whereabouts should call 101.