Response to concern for welfare report - Greater Manchester Police, July 2018

At 00.22am on 2 July 2018, Greater Manchester Police (GMP) received a telephone call reporting concern for a man’s welfare after he voluntarily went to the accident and emergency department of the Royal Bolton Hospital. The man reported he was being followed and attacked by aliens. He was captured on CCTV at 11.26pm the day before, leaving the hospital without being seen.

An ambulance was sent to the man’s home address, where paramedics received no answer. At 8.52am, police officers forced entry into the man’s home, where it was established he was not there. Officers searched around his home and with neighbours for any information that may help them to locate him. They checked on the police national computer and local police system, but nothing came up

At 11.43am on 2 July, as enquiries were carried out in order to locate the man and establish his safety and well-being, GMP received a report stating that a body had been found. The body was later confirmed as the man reported missing from Royal Bolton Hospital.

The investigation examined GMP’s response to the report of concern for the man’s welfare. During the investigation, our investigators reviewed police logs, the initial call from the hospital to police and follow up call from police to hospital regarding the man, as well as force policies. We also obtained statements from the control room staff member who took the initial call and the police officer who attended the man’s flat.

Evidence indicated that GMP made various enquiries in efforts to locate the man before he was found dead later that same day. We found that the call handler had initially misspelt the man’s name. This might have resulted in information about him being previously reported missing and being found in the vicinity of where his body was eventually found not being noticed by GMP immediately. However, we found nothing to suggest that any police officer or member of police staff had breached any of the standards of professional behaviours in relation to their indirect contact with the man while trying to locate him.

The investigation concluded there was no indication any police officer had behaved in a manner that would justify the bringing of disciplinary proceedings, or had committed a criminal offence. We completed our investigation in December 2018.