POLICE searching for a missing mother of four and her severely disabled son yesterday said a body had been found in undergrowth, three days after the pair disappeared.
The body, believed to be that of Heather Wardle, 39, was discovered by teenagers less than five minutes' walk from her home in Redditch, Worcestershire, at about 6pm on Monday.
The housewife had been missing with James Hughes, 22 – who is an
epileptic, can barely walk and has the mental age of a toddler – since Friday, after they failed to show up at a friend's house.
West Mercia Police are now worried about the whereabouts of "extremely vulnerable" James, who "cannot fend for himself".
The body, which has yet to be formally identified, was found in undergrowth near a bus route. The death is being treated as "unexplained", but police are not looking for anyone else.
Superintendent Jane Horwood said: "James has not been found, and obviously in light of the discovery of what we believe to be his mother's body, we are very concerned for his wellbeing.
"James has the mental age of an 18-month-old child and a number of other health problems, including epilepsy.
"He needs his most basic needs taken care of and cannot fend for himself.
"At the moment, we have no idea where he is, but he is extremely vulnerable and while we are keeping an open mind, obviously we are very concerned.
"Furthermore, while we have been able to establish that Heather was last seen at about 6pm on Friday, 18 April, it is not clear when James was last seen.
"We are therefore trying to find out more about both Heather and James's movements over the last few months. We are trying to put together a picture of their lives and we want to hear from anyone who knew either of them."
Supt Horwood added: "Heather was James's main carer and her family tell us she was a fantastic mother. However, looking after another person around the clock – however much that person is loved – inevitably takes its toll and we can only imagine what tremendous strain Heather was under."
Supt Horwood said Ms Wardle's family – her partner, Brian Kirby, and her other sons, Daniel, 18, Callum, eight, and Luke, six – were "devastated".
She added: "This is a very unusual case, but we must stress that, at this stage, it is still an inquiry into an unexplained death and a missing person."
Friends paid tribute to the loving mother, but said she looked distant when they last saw her on Friday and could be seen having conversations with herself.
Sara Hay, 32, a neighbour, said: "She didn't look her normal self – she just looked fed-up. The last time I saw her was when she was picking her kids up from school. She's not the type of person to just walk off and leave her other children, because she dotes on her kids and would never leave them behind."
Another neighbour, Lyn Parkes, 48, said: "Poor James can barely walk on his own. She was quite a strong girl and it was her who kept the family going. It was as if she did everything, and without her the family would fall apart.
"When I saw her last week, she looked like she had lost weight. I saw her walking along the alleyway to get the kids from school and she looked like she was having a good conversation with someone – but there was no-one with her at the time.
"She didn't look like she was all there. They're a lovely family as well – it is awful."
Another neighbour, who did not wish to be named, said: "She was a really pleasant person and always looked happy and cheerful. She always seemed to be so good with James, she was caring and was always there for him. She was a loving mother towards her other kids as well."
