Thirty years after Damien Nettles disappeared, his family is making a fresh appeal for information. The 16-year-old was last seen walking alone along the high street in Cowes, Isle of Wight, on 2 November 1996, after an evening with friends. He never made it home.
Final Goodbye Recalled
Speaking on This Morning on 2 November, Damien's mother Valerie recalled their final exchange before he left. She said: "He was waving at the door and he said 'bye bye mum, see you later' and I said be home by 10.30."
It was the following morning that she realised he had not returned. "It was the next morning, Damien's bed hadn't been slept in," she told hosts Ben and Cat. Initially, the family thought he might have stayed with a friend, as he would sometimes stay out late and phone them that night or the next morning.
Valerie explained: "On the Isle of Wight we didn't worry about things like that back then, rightly or wrongly, we didn't know what we know now." As their worry grew, the family "drove all over the place" looking for Damien before contacting the authorities. She said he had shown no signs of being unhappy, and she did not believe he had run away.
Last Known Sighting
Forensic psychologist Kerry Daynes outlined the last known sightings, including CCTV showing Damien at a chip shop at about 11.30pm. She said: "That is the only surviving bit of footage that we have of him, and that's where the trail goes cold."
Despite extensive investigations and multiple arrests, Damien has never been found. Valerie said arrests came 15 years after he disappeared, but a lack of evidence left the family without answers.
Family's Appeal
Alongside their appeal, his mum and aunt remembered a teenager who loved making people laugh. Valerie described him as caring and friendly, and said he always stood up for the underdog. "Damien was a very sweet, very lovable, very loving little boy. He was delightful, cute as a button," she said. His aunt Sally-Ann Austin remembered him as "funny and cheeky", adding: "He was a beautiful boy."
Urging anyone with information to speak up, Sally-Ann said: "If you think you know anything at all we'd be so grateful, if you could let us have any information." She appealed to those whose circumstances or allegiances may have changed over the years, and to people who now have children of their own.
For Valerie, the hope is to finally bring Damien home and lay him to rest. "It would mean everything, I understand now the peace it brings you when you have somewhere someone is laid to rest, and we don't have that... we want Damien, we want to lay him to rest, that's all we need."
