Sussex police are to re-examine the case of a murdered schoolboy who disappeared on his way home more than 40 years ago.
Vishal Mehrotra, eight, vanished from west London in July 1981 and part of his remains were found in Rogate, West Sussex, seven months later. No one has been convicted for his murder.
Police told Vishal’s father, Vishambar Mehrotra, that detectives had been given a “clear direction” to “advance” the case.
Police officers also apologised for failing to spot a potential link between Vishal’s murder and a document known to them that had been found in the possession of a convicted paedophile.
Vishal’s father said he was content that Sussex police have said new lines of inquiry would be followed up, but had doubts about how thorough the investigation will be. “Well, I am very pleased, but I am also sceptical because I am not so sure how much and when they are going to actually investigate,” he said.
Vishal and his family were on their way home to Putney when he disappeared, having watched Prince Charles and Princess Diana’s wedding parade in central London.
Last month, his father criticised Sussex police for failing to reinvestigate the case when fresh evidence had emerged. He said he had lost trust over the police’s handling of the case.
Sussex police said though the case was still an open and unresolved investigation, at the time “there are no proportionate or viable lines of enquiry to be followed up in this investigation”.
A new BBC podcast, Vishal, describes how the BBC South East journalist Colin Campbell and two retired police officers investigated a connection between a local paedophile gang and the unsolved disappearance.
New material uncovered by the team includes a document, titled Vishal, written in 1983 by a man convicted of child sexual offences about a boy he was abusing.
The document was created a year after Vishal’s remains were found in woodland less than 5 miles from where the mother of this offender lived, in a property where he is known to have abused children. It has been held by Sussex police since the 1990s but was only connected to Vishal’s murder four years ago.
Shaun Keep, a retired Scotland Yard detective who helped convict the killers of Stephen Lawrence, said he was “quite aghast” at the force’s response to the fresh material: “I did feel it was entirely inadequate, quite frankly.”
DS Mark Chapman, of Sussex police, said: “We acknowledge the ongoing distress to Mr Mehrotra and Vishal’s wider family and their need to find answers to what happened to Vishal in 1981.
“The force is committed to identifying those responsible for Vishal’s tragic death and to delivering justice for Vishal and his family.
“Extensive and thorough police enquiries have been completed to date but we remain open to and welcome any new information, and officers will continue to follow-up on any reasonable and viable lines of enquiry.”
