Officers searching for missing Sunderland man find a body

Police in the city have been searching for Ky Parker, 37, since 23rd May

Author: Tom HailePublished 8th Jun 2021

Officers searching for missing Sunderland man Ky Parker have sadly found a body.

Ky, 37, was reported missing in the early hours of Sunday, May 23 after he was last seen leaving an address in the Bede Street area of the city about 1am.

A search was immediately launched for Ky and police established his likely route on the morning in question – with a man matching his description spotted walking along the riverside path that goes past the National Glass Centre towards the Wearmouth Bridge.

Enquiries to locate Ky have focused around that location but sadly last night (Monday) a body was discovered in the River Wear.

Formal identification is yet to take place but officers do believe the body is that of Ky. Officers have informed his family and are offering them support at this devastating time.

Police do not believe there to be any third party involvement in the death and a report will be made for the coroner.

Detective Chief Inspector Sean Mcguigan, of Northumbria Police, said:

“This is the update that we did not want to deliver and our thoughts go out to Ky’s family, friends and all who knew him.

“We will continue to offer them any support that they need as they attempt to come to terms with this tragic news, and I’d ask that their privacy is respected at this time. The last fortnight has been incredibly difficult for them.

“As part of our search for Ky, we released details to the media and ran a public appeal for information in the hope that we could locate him safe and well, but sadly that has not proven possible.

“We are sad that we could not bring you more positive news, but I would like to offer a sincere thanks to Ky’s family and the entire community who rallied behind our search and helped to ensure the appeal to find him was spread far and wide.

“The community really came together to support us in a collective bid to locate Ky, and for that I am incredibly grateful.

“I’d also like to thank all the officers, staff and volunteers involved in the extensive search for Ky over the last two weeks – it is very much appreciated.”