Police divers join search for missing Victoria Taylor in bid to find mother who disappeared eight days ago

8 October 2024, 20:24 | Updated: 8 October 2024, 20:32

Police divers have joined the search for missing mum Victoria Taylor after the force said on Monday there is no reason to “suggest any form of third-party involvement”.

Ms Taylor vanished from her home in Malton, North Yorkshire, on Monday September 30 with a number of her personal possessions found close to the River Derwent in the town.

Frogmen are working with officers equipped with sonar technology and underwater cameras who have been conducting a sweep of the river, according to MailOnline.

They have concentrated their search on the stretch of water close to where Victoria’s clothes were found.

A spokesman for North Yorkshire Police confirmed on Tuesday afternoon: "We have deployed divers today in the search for Victoria Taylor."

After leaving her home, Ms Taylor was pictured on CCTV at 11:35am at the BP garage on Welham Road, Malton.

Police confirmed on Monday a further sighting of the 34-year-old.

Read more: Missing mum Victoria Taylor’s ‘cap’ and ‘rucksack’ found in search along North Yorkshire river path

Around 20 minutes later, at 11:53am, the mum was seen on CCTV at Malton bus station on Railway Street.

A spokesman said: "To date, this is the last confirmed sighting of Victoria.

"We remain open-minded and whilst the investigation of Victoria's movements has been thorough, we will continue to pursue existing and new lines of inquiry.

"Based on information obtained from these exhaustive inquiries, North Yorkshire Police is satisfied at the current time that there is no information to suggest any form of third-party involvement following the disappearance of Victoria and this remains a missing person case."

Inspector Martin Dennison said: "This is an extremely difficult time for Victoria's family and we are continuing to do all we can to try and find her.

"The focus of our search remains the area around the River Derwent and Victoria's family members are aware of this and the wider strategy that is in place.

"The family and the police understand the local community wanting to show their support with the searches for Victoria, but we urge people to exercise caution when searching particularly near to the river."

Last week, Ms Taylor’s fiancé broke his silence as he said her daughter "just wants her mam to come home".

On Friday, her fiancé Matthew Taylor put out a picture of the couple, as he said that he hopes she comes back safely.

"We are all hoping she comes back," he said of the care home nurse and mother of one.

"She was dedicated to her job, dedicated to us, and we had just returned from a lovely holiday," he told the Mail. "It is just sad."

Referring to her two-year-old daughter, Mr Taylor added: "Obviously, this one is missing her mam. We are all hoping she comes back."

Ms Taylor is white and approximately 5ft 6in in height. She was last seen wearing blue jeans, a black Adidas original puffa jacket with white stripes down the sleeves and a grey Jack Wills hooded jumper.