"I loved her and she loved me back. I will always fight for her"
It's 12 years to the day since York chef Claudia Lawrence went missing.
Last updated 18th Mar 2021
"Nobody charged, nobody responsible or are they still at large on the streets of York or somewhere else now? Wherever they are they remain a threat to our communities". Those are the words of Martin Dales - a family friend of Claudia Lawrence.
York chef Claudia - who was born and raised in Malton - went missing on the 18th March 2009 at the age of 35.
Police previously said they "strongly suspect key and vital information'' which would offer a breakthrough in the case of Claudia's disappearance is being "withheld''.
Nine people have been questioned as part of the investigation, but no charges have ever been brought.
Claudia's friend Jen King spoke to Greatest Hits Radio York outside Claudia's house in Heworth, and said: "It's obviously incredibly frustrating that in 2021 we're still waiting for answers.
"As time marches on it becomes less likely that we're going to find out from whoever is behind this as to what's gone on. We rely more heavily upon someone else who might know; a lot can happen in 12 years.
"This person or persons responsible could have passed on themselves, or may no longer be in the area. It is literally a lifetime ago - we try not to lose hope, but it does become less and less likely that we'll find out.
"We'll carry on the fight for Claudia and other missing people. Until we do know what happened to Claudia, then none of us have got any closure or peace from this.
"It is just a perpetual motion of grief. Year in, year out. Day in, day out"
Jen also spoke about the Sarah Everard case: "The thing about the Sarah Everard story that hurt me the most was not just that she was such a beautiful young girl - also from York - who met such a tragic end; but also Sarah was two years younger than Claudia was when she went missing.
"Sarah is four years younger than I am now. The only difference between me, Claudia and Sarah is that I've made it home. In 2021 things like this shouldn't still be happening, but they are. Women as a whole really need to stand up and be counted".
Claudia took Jen in when "she had nowhere else to go", and they became close friends: "She was wonderful. She made me feel welcome and put a roof over my head.
"She welcomed me into her friendship group, and she made my life complete at the time when I needed something to complete it.
"I will forever be grateful, forever in her debt. I loved her and she loved me, and I will always fight for her".
Claudia's father Peter died in February, without ever knowing what happened to her. Peter's friend Martin Dales says it was Peter's wish to carry on the campaign: "Despite the exhaustive efforts of (Claudia's) late father Peter, family, friends and North Yorkshire Police, there are still no answers and it is tragic that Peter has died not knowing what has happened to her.
"More to the point in the light of there being no one brought to justice in the 12 years, there are still one or more people 'at large' in York or maybe somewhere else now who do know what has happened to Claudia and where she is and potentially remain a threat to the communities in which they and we live.''