Family of missing RAF man Corrie McKeague hire private detectives to help find him three months after he vanished
THE family of missing RAF gunner Corrie McKeague have hired "an elite team of specialists" to try and find him more than three months after he vanished.
Police have found no trace of the 23-year-old serviceman since he was last spotted on CCTV in the early hours of September 24 after a night out in Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk.
He was reported missing after he failed to turn up at his base in RAF Honington, and it was feared he could have tried to walk the ten miles back.
Since his disappearance, Suffolk Police has carried out "extensive" investigative work to find him, searching woodland, scouring hundreds of hours of CCTV and tracing dozens of people who may held clues.
Now a Crowdfunding page set up by the family's supporters has raised more than £52,000 to support the search, some of which will go towards paying for private investigators from McKenzie Intelligence Services.
Writing on the Find Corrie Facebook page, Corrie's uncle Tony Wringe said: "I am delighted to be able to tell you that we have been able to secure the services of an elite team of specialists (some of whom are colleagues from the organisation I used to work with) to support our efforts to find Corrie.
"The team will be working hard to provide the best possible assistance to the Suffolk Police major investigation team."
Mr Wringe said MIS provided specialist intelligence services to Government agencies and major international corporations.
Earlier this week, Corrie's mother Nicola Urquhart, 48, made an appeal for her son's return in an interview with Phillip Schofield and Davina McCall on ITV's This Morning.
The tearful former policewoman said she believes her son could be being held captive and ppealed for anyone with information to come forward in return for a £50,000 reward.Choking up, Nicola said: "I realise as each day goes by the chances of him being alive are slim but without someone saying he is.
"I'm not giving up. Someone could be holding him, but, if they are, the public support is amazing."
Missing RAF airman Corrie with his ex-girlfriend Chloe Fox
On New Year's Day Nicola released family video of her son happily singing along to the musical Wicked a month before he vanished.
Before Christmas Hollywood star Tom Hardy made a video appeal for help finding missing Corrie, from Dunfermline.
Nicola was also pictured combing through undergrowth with a team of volunteers as she refuses to give up the search.
In November police admitted they have "no leads" despite trawling through 1,100 hours of CCTV footage.
Police are keen to speak to anyone who was in Bury St Edmunds on the night of September 23/24. Anyone with information that may assist is urged to call the Suffolk Police incident room on 01473 782019.