Student nurse Owami Davies has been found 'safe and well' in Hampshire by Metropolitan Police just under eight weeks after she went missing.
The 24-year-old had last been seen on walking along the London Road in Croydon on Thursday, 7 July, and as time went on, concerns for her safety continued to mount.
Today, Detective Chief Inspector Nigel Penney from the force’s Specialist Crime Command confirmed the young woman had been found 'in good health'.
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Detective Chief Inspector Penney said: “This is clearly the outcome we were hopeful for – the finding of the missing lady, Owami Davies.
“I’d like to say she has been found safe and well outside the London area in the county of Hampshire and she’s currently with specialist officers from my team.”
He added: “She looks in good health, she’s in a place of safety, and not currently in the vulnerable state that we were led to believe she was in at the start of her disappearance.”
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Met Commander Paul Brogden said "all aspects" of the investigation are now to be reviewed to assess whether there is "any learning that we need to take' from how it was handled.
During the search for Owami, police made five different arrests – two on suspicion of murder and three on suspicion of kidnap – and numerous appeals to the public for information.
On Monday, 22 August, detectives suggested that Owami could be sleeping rough, with no money on her Oyster card, no phone, and no bank cards.
This was one working hypothesis, the Met said, adding that officers were keeping an open mind to all possibilities.
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Ms Davies had last been seen on 7 July after leaving her family home in Grays, Essex on 4 July having told her mother she was going to the gym.
She was found asleep in a doorway in Clarendon Road, Croydon on 6 July while waiting for a friend, but told Metropolitan Police officers that she did not need help and left.
Her family had reported her disappearance but Ms Davies had not been marked as a missing person on the police database at that time.
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Mr Penney and Mr Brogden said they were "ecstatic" at the outcome of the case, with Mr Brogden adding: “More importantly I’m pleased for Owami’s mother and her brother.”
Officers confirmed on Tuesday that all five people who were arrested were released and are still on police bail, with a decision on what will happen next following a "full debrief".
Topics: News
Ali Condon