On the eve of National Missing Person’s Day, Michelle Baglin sits down to talk about her husband, Peter, who left home on the evening of Wednesday 28 December 2022 to go for a walk – and never returned.
In little over a month, there have yet to be any positive sightings of Peter – or “Pete” as Michelle refers to him – but she continues to search for him and keep him in the public’s mind’s eye, in the hope that it will prompt someone to come forward with information as to where Pete could be.
Paying tribute to the help she has received from the police, her family, friends, work colleagues and community in Boothstown in Salford, Michelle describes Pete’s favourite walk along the Bridgewater Canal.
It was on the towpath of Bridgewater Canal where his phone, hat and headphones were found on the morning of Thursday 29 December 2022. He had been captured on CCTV the night before, at the Texaco Garage on East Lancs Road at Mosley Common.
Reporting Pete missing to GMP after quarter-hourly phone calls to him remained unanswered, officers descended on the canal towpath to carry out a detailed grid search in the area. A number of resources were deployed to search for Pete, including underwater search and rescue, mountain rescue and drones.
Michelle also organised searches of the entire stretch of the canal, with over 200 people attending to help. But to date, there haven’t been any results from these searches.
Desperate for ‘Pete’ to come home, Michelle said: “It’s a very surreal feeling. It’s like it’s happening, but it’s not happening to me. I never thought I would ever be in this position and I just want Pete home.
“I am convinced that there is someone out there who knows where he is. He is instantly recognisable by the tattoo of ‘Michelle’ on the left-side of his neck and I’m urging anyone who may have seen with him, or been with him, to get in touch. I just want to know he’s okay.
“Pete is the type of person who always buys homeless people a sandwich and a drink, and I really hope that someone is doing that for him, wherever he may be.
“If you have seen Pete, my family and I would be extremely grateful if you could contact GMP on 101 or through the LiveChat Function on the website, www.gmp.police.uk. If you’re unsure about coming forwards, you can also pass information on anonymously through the independent charity, Crimestoppers, on 0800 555 111.”
