The aunt of a man missing for three years has criticised the police search, said her family are going through "cruel" agony while he remains missing, and said she has given up hope they will find him alive.
Ricky Harris, from Aberdare, was last seen on CCTV at around 2.20pm on Saturday, November 18, 2023. The footage, taken from near his flat at Maes-Y-Deri, Aberaman, was captured just hours after his aunt dropped him home from a friend's house. It showed the 31-year-old - who has links to Aberdare, Pontypridd and Tredegar - wearing grey and black clothing. His family said his disappearance was out of character and said they had been out searching for him most days since he went missing.
Letter and arrest
In June 2025 the family were sent a disturbing letter which alleged that Ricky had been murdered, detailing where he had been buried. At the time South Wales Police stated: "To date there has been no evidence to suggest that there has been third party involvement."
A year later in June 2026 the force shared that they had made an arrest in connection to Ricky's disappearance. A 41-year-old man from Mountain Ash was arrested on suspicion of preventing a lawful burial and perverting the course of justice. He was released on bail, which remains the case as of September 1, 2026.
Family's anguish
Ricky's aunty Nina has now told WalesOnline: "His 34th birthday was on [August 26]. He was 31 when he went missing. It's cruel. I bawled my eyes out all day, I couldn't be strong, it was awful. We let off balloons for him and we shouldn't have to do that. He should be here with us.
"As a family it's heartbreaking for each and every one of us. My daughter is 18 and it's devastating. She thought the world of Ricky and he thought the world of her. He would take her to the cinema, to the waffle shop. They always did things together.
"[My younger daughter] said she misses collecting spiders with him. He had always been terrified of spiders and he once said he can't believe she had cleared his phobia of spiders. After that he went missing. It was cruel.
"I wake up in bed and wonder if he suffered, if he was crying. I think all sorts. I wonder, what really happened to him?"
Search efforts and police response
Nina said the family has gone searching for Ricky most days since he has gone missing, but have not yet found anything of note. She said: "I'm still out there every day. I found a campsite there and we dug up all around that. We could be out between 10am and 2pm because of the school runs.
"We don't go on weekends as the children are off school. We feel like we've hit a brick wall, and we know we have because it's so big up there we think: 'Where do we start?'"
At what is known as the Phurnie area of Abercwmboi, Nina said she had seen divers searching for Ricky. She said she was told by one of them that they were not able to search the entire lake due to dangers.
She said: "I noticed they were just going in at the edges. I asked: 'What is going to happen with the rest of the water?' He said some parts can't be dived because they're too dangerous.
"They've got until next month to carry out the search, and the full body of water won't have been searched. I spoke to [the officer in charge] on Friday to say I'm not happy that they are missing parts of it and he said if it is the case they will have to apply to have it drained. I don't think they've done enough.
"I do get on with [the officer in charge] but like I said to him, they could be out there diving every day and it would never be enough for me. He's my nephew. He's out there every night on his own. I do believe he will be found, but where? It is massive."
In relation to this a spokesperson for South Wales Police said: "The specialist search and diving teams of South Wales Police are some of the most experienced in the UK and they are being supported by expert police diving supervisors who will risk assess dive locations to ensure that the divers who we deploy are not put into life threatening situations.
"In many rivers and lakes across the post-industrial landscape of the south Wales valleys are hidden hazards from the industrial use of these waterways so any risk assessment will involve detailed dive plans and risk assessments to ensure the safety of our officers. We continue to search waterways and land in and around Abercwmboi and have relied on community intelligence to support our search strategies."
They added: "This is one of the most significant sized missing persons investigations underway at the moment. The enquiry has been supported by numerous south Wales police specialist teams, including divers, search teams, NPAS and NCA along with key partners across the Rhondda and Cynon valleys."
Hope fades and appeal for information
Nina - who was the last known person to see Ricky - said she does not believe he will be found alive. "I don't believe we will find him alive now. Before he went missing he would speak to me every single day without fail, no matter what. He's a family man, that's just Ricky.
"I just don't understand why he didn't tell me if something was wrong, because he would tell me everything but for some reason he didn't. Whether it was to protect us, I don't know. We are a strong family and we always stuck together, and he knows that. If he had any trouble, he knew we'd all be there."
She urged anyone with information to come forward to give the family a sense of closure. She said: "Any information would be a help to us, no matter how big or small. Because we know there are people out there who know something. As horrible as it is, I can't wait for the day he is found. He deserves to be laid to rest and as a family we deserve closure."
A spokesman for South Wales Police said: "The investigation into Ricky's disappearance has been extensive and all hypotheses have been considered. The inquiry is being overseen by a detective chief inspector in our major crime investigation team.
"The inquiry has maintained an open mind from the outset as to the cause of Ricky's disappearance, and in these sorts of cases that will inevitably also consider if a person's disappearance is as a result of the actions of a third party.
"The new information that was passed to us in June (the letter) in common with any new information or intelligence will result in a reassessment of the available evidence and is the main reason we regularly appeal for information from the community.
"Our investigation remains active and ongoing. A 41-year-old man from Mountain Ash was arrested on suspicion of preventing a lawful burial and perverting the course of justice in connection with Ricky's disappearance and was later released on bail."
Detective chief inspector Danielle Thorne said: "Every sighting and piece of information from the public is treated with the utmost seriousness. We are continually reviewing new leads, ensuring that no stone is left unturned.
"We are unwavering in our commitment to locate Ricky, and we are in constant communication with his family, keeping them updated on every development in our search."
