£10k Reward In Pat McCormick Investigation

A £10,000 reward from Crimestoppers has been offered in exchange for information which leads to the recovery of William McCormick's body.

Mr McCormick, who is known locally as Pat, has been missing from Thursday 30 May, when he was last seen walking along Castle Street in Comber at around 10.45pm.

After approaching the disappearance as a missing person's case, police later confirmed their belief that the father-of-four had been murdered.

Four weeks later, detective Chief Inspector Pete Montgomery revealed the £10,000 reward. He said: "Pat's family deserve to have his body back and give him a proper funeral- they deserve to be able to say goodbye and lay him to rest and I am hoping this reward provides an incentive for anyone who knows where he is to bring that information forward to police or to Crimestoppers where you are guaranteed absolute anonymity.

"They are completely devastated- in fact Pat's elderly mum has told me she can't face eating since her son disappeared- and they wake up each morning wondering if this will be the day we find his body."

Police believe the 55-year-old was murdered in or around the area where he was last seen. CCTV shows him walking in the Castle Street area, where he goes under an archway that leads to some flats. No footage has been found to show his return.

Mr McCormick's parents issued a plea for information that may assist the investigation and allow them to bury their son. Their statement reads: "We would like to give a massive thank you to the PSNI and all the volunteers for all their hard work in trying to find Pat and get justice for him.

"A special thanks must also go to the people of Comber and surrounding areas for their help and support.

"We as a family are heartbroken and devastated at the loss of our Pat. We ask for further help and information to bring him home for a proper burial that Pat and us deserve. Please pass on any information that you know to the police or to Crimestoppers."

DCI Montgomery issued an appeal for local people to be on the look out for a distinctive mobile phone cover, black with red stripes, that belonged to Mr McCormick. His iPhone SE remains unaccounted for, which could be broken, smashed or in pieces.

Officers are also hoping to trace the movements of a blue Ford Transit van which was travelling on the Old Ballygowan Road in Comber at around 2pm on Friday 31 May.

A number of land and water searches have been carried out, and detectives are continuing to analyse hundreds of hours of CCTV footage.

"I would like to echo Pat's family's thanks to the community for their help – the information you are providing really is making a difference," DCI Montgomery added.

"They deserve some peace – please do the right thing."

Anyone who wishes to provide information can contact police on 101 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.



(JG/CM)