Police searching for a missing student believe they have found his body in Lancashire on Christmas Day.
Tom Dingle, 19, was last on CCTV on Mill Lane in the village of Appley Bridge heading towards the Boathouse pub in the early hours of December 13.
Lancashire Police said they were contacted by a member of the public who discovered a deceased man’s remains in woodland off Lees Lane, Dalton just after 3pm yesterday.
Formal identification has yet to take place, but they suspect the body to be Mr Dingle, whose death is not being treated as suspicious.
The Lancaster University student, from Wigan, was in a “vulnerable state of mind” at the time of his disappearance, his mother Susan Dingle said.
During a press conference, the heartbroken 56-year-old added: “We just want him home as soon as possible.
“We’ve even put a note on the front door so he knows he can just walk in. We’re just here to love and protect him, that’s all.
Tom Dingle, from Wigan, was last seen walking alone in the middle of the night pic.twitter.com/GpDcns3rSH
— Liverpool Echo (@LivEchonews) December 22, 2025
“Tom is in a vulnerable state of mind following a traumatic event. He is grieving very much.
“My husband Peter and I, and Tom’s older brother, are going out of our minds with worry that something may have happened to him.
“We just want our baby back, that’s all.”
Mrs Dingle told the Manchester Evening News: “He needs to know that he’s not in any trouble because of the distress and worry. He needs to know that we are not in any way upset with him.”
The urgent manhunt included uniformed and specialist search officers, police dogs, a drone and mountain rescue teams.
Mr Dingle was last seen wearing a black Carhartt jacket, Doc Martin shoes and jeans, while carrying a backpack over his shoulder.
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