People urged not to carry out own searches for missing father not seen in three weeks
Police have urged members of the public to call 999 immediately if they have information about a Telford man who has been missing since early October.
As the search for Harjinder Takhar, known as Harry enters its fourth week, West Mercia Police has urged people not to post about possible sightings on social media.
The force also spoken out to try to stop amateur sleuths from heading out as DIY detectives to search Stirchley Pools, warning they could find themselves in danger. Officers continue to search the area.
Father of four Harry has been missing from Telford since Sunday 2 October. He was last seen at around 8.30am.
Earlier this month his family said the 58-year-old climbed over his son in the back seat to get out of their car and bolted off into the woods after saying he felt sick and claustrophobic and that he couldn't breathe.
He was last seen wearing a navy-blue Barbour jacket, navy-blue shirt, black jeans and black trainers.
Detective Inspector Jo Whitehead said: “This remains a missing person enquiry and our team of detectives are exhausting every avenue available to us to try and find Harry.
“Harry’s disappearance is not connected to any other investigation.
“We urge the public to only phone 999 if you believe you have genuine information that could help find him.
“If you do have information, please call 999 immediately and do not post on social media.
“Any delay in providing information is counter-productive to our investigation and unfair for Harry’s family.
“Our searches remain around Stirchley Pools and we have no evidence to suggest Harry may be in any other area.
“While we very much appreciate the public’s support we ask that no-one attempts to search the Stirchley Pools area themselves.
“It is potentially dangerous and the public could get into difficulty if they try to access the area.
“Everyone at West Mercia Police, and Harry’s family, remain extremely concerned for him and we are doing everything we can to find him.”
A Facebook group, called Help Find Missing Harjinder Takhar "Harry", now has 4,000 members, many of whom are helping to spread the word around Telford where Harry's family moved around three years ago.
Leaflet drops have been carried out in Stirchley, Dawley. Wellington and Shifnal with posters also placed in taxis.
