The disappearance of a British rugby player in Barcelona is being investigated by Spanish police to determine whether a crime has been committed.
Levi Davis, 24, was last seen on CCTV leaving a pub in Barcelona in October 2022.
Davis, who had played for Bath and Worthing and appeared on Celebrity X-factor in 2019, had gone to visit a friend, Richard Squire, in Ibiza and worked on his music.
He arrived on the island on 17 October before travelling by boat to Barcelona on 29 October. Squire told the BBC he dropped Levi in Ibiza town the previous day, which was the last time he saw Davis.
Squire messaged Levi to check in the following morning and Levi told him he had left.
“I was obviously worried for him. I said: ‘Gone where?’ He said: ‘Barcelona, going to see some mates’.
“So then I sent him a voice note saying: ‘You’re worrying me. Please tell me where you are’,” he told the BBC.
Davis said he would call Squire when he got to Barcelona but he never did. A few days later, Squire contacted Davis’s family and other mutual friends and the police launched a missing persons investigation on 8 November. Since Davis’s disappearance, there have been few official updates.
“Hi mom….it’s beautiful” the last video Levi Davis sent his mum - before he went missing in Barcelona almost 5 weeks ago. His family & friends haven’t heard from him since. More on @BBCNewsbeat @BBCBreakfast @BBCNews https://t.co/zJiZch39QV pic.twitter.com/jG6ERiwhz9
— Rachel S (@R_Stonehouse) December 1, 2022
Mossos d’Esquadra, the Catalan Police, told the BBC there were “disturbing” issues with the case and “no logical explanation”. The case had been handed to a specialist crime unit for further investigation.
Davis was captured on CCTV leaving the Old Irish Pub in the centre of Barcelona at about 10pm on 29 October, which is his last known whereabouts.
Just after midnight on 30 October, Davis tried to call another friend before sending a short WhatsApp voice note, which was shared with the BBC.
Barcelona is “absolutely beautiful”, he said. “It’s amazing. I’m literally just getting all my inspo. I love it. It’s so good.” The voice note is the last known contact Davis had with friends or family.
Julie, Davis’s mum, last heard from her son a few hours before he went missing. She told the BBC she was frustrated at the “slow” progress of the investigation. The family announced that Gavin Burrows, a private investigator, was brought in to help the search efforts.
In November 2022, Davis’s passport was found at Barcelona’s port area. Spanish police confirmed this to the BBC but said they could not comment on the investigation any further at that time.
Julie described the weeks following Davis’ disappearance as “the scariest time” of her life and “an emotional whirlwind”.
“Since the last thing we heard about the passport, there’s been no more information,” she told the BBC.
According to Julie, Davis had been dealing with a knee injury in the months preceding his disappearance, which had taken a toll on his mental health.
Julie told the BBC she was “disgusted” by some of the rumours about Davis’s disappearance, some of which involved a video Davis posted on Instagram and then deleted in the days before he went missing.
• This article was amended on 1 March 2023. Davis was last seen in October 2022, not October 2021 as the text and subheading of an earlier version said.
