Rose West urged to solve missing schoolgirl mystery

THE brother of a schoolgirl who went missing 46 years ago has appealed to serial killer Rose West to reveal what happened to his sister.

Mary Bastholm was 15 when she disappeared in Gloucester on 5 January 1968 on her way to catch a bus to meet her boyfriend.

Police thought it was likely that she was abducted and murdered by Fred West, who killed himself in prison in 1995, a year after his arrest. However, a body has never been discovered to provide proof.

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Mary's brother, Peter Bastholm, now 69, told [1]Sky News: "I think Rose knows exactly what happened to Mary because I assume she and Fred discussed it between themselves. Whether she will ever disclose it, I really don't know.

"It would be a final act to find Mary's body and lay it to rest after all these years, after all we have gone through."

His plea comes 20 years after the remains of nine bodies were found in the West's home at 25 Cromwell Street, Gloucester, dubbed the "House of Horrors".

Mary was not among the victims found under the house and its garden. Bastholm says he and his wife went to the police station to view some of the objects taken from the house and discovered a silver locket on a chain that they were sure Mary had worn as a bridesmaid at their wedding. However, they were unable to prove that it was the same one.

Fred West's son, Stephen, also claims his father confessed to Mary's murder, but the serial killer never made the admission to police.

Mary worked as a waitress at a cafe where Fred West was a customer. He also did some building work at the back of the cafe and the teenager was seen by witnesses in West's car.

Rose West is the only woman serving a whole-life tariff life-sentence after she was convicted of ten murders in 1995. She and her husband are thought to have sexually molested, murdered and dismembered other young girls they picked up on the street.