Back from dead ... after five years
‘Murder victim’ discovered in woodland hideaway
‘Subject to exploitation’
A MAN feared to have been murdered nearly five years ago has been found alive and well and living in a wood.
Migrant worker Ricardas Puisys, 40, was last seen at his workplace in September 2015 and police said they had ‘genuine concerns he had come to harm’.
Police launched a murder investigation, arresting another man.
But fears of Mr Puisys’ demise proved premature. A Facebook account was set up in the Lithuanian national’s name in 2018, displaying photographs of him, although officers were unable to verify if he was still alive.
Then the key breakthrough came in late June, when police received a tip-off which led to them finding him in woodland in Wisbech, Cambridgeshire, on Saturday.
Officers believe he was in hiding to escape gangs who had been exploiting him. Detective Chief Inspector Rob Hall, of the Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and
Hertfordshire major crime unit, said of Mr Puisys’ disappearance: ‘There were genuine concerns Ricardas came to harm. For almost five years, his disappearance has been a complete mystery.
‘That was until we received information at the end of June. Following a search of a wooded area, Ricardas was found living in undergrowth, very well concealed, after having deliberately hidden and having not spoken with anyone for some time.’
Mr Puisys disappeared while working for Nightlayer Leek Company, a fruit and vegetable supplier in Chatteris, Cambridgeshire. The wood where he was found is around 20 miles away.
DCI Hall said Mr Puisys ‘made the decision to run away as he had been a victim of crime, having been subject to exploitation’. The detective added that he is now being given support.
The alarm was raised into Mr Puisys’ disappearance after he did not return to work and his identification badge was found in a park. A murder investigation began in November 2015.
He had been a casual land worker, living from hand to mouth. He had no vehicle, few friends and no close family in the UK and spoke little English. Officers previously had concerns over Mr Puisy’s welfare before he went missing. After his disappearance, a terraced home in Wisbech, where he had been living, was searched and charity Crimestoppers offered a £10,000 reward for information. A man of 31 was arrested in 2015, but his bail was cancelled in 2016 due to ‘insufficient evidence’.