Hi, and welcome back to The Unseen Podcast, a podcast dedicated to missing people, unresolved cases, and UK true crime. Today's day six of twelve days of missing person episodes throughout December, and in this episode we're going to be discussing the case of Susan Ford. Susan disappeared in twenty twenty two while she was in Scotland and has not been seen by her family since. This episode is about a missing person and so does not contain any graphic details,
but listener discretion is always advised. Starnaway is the main town on the island of Lewis and Harris in the Outer Hebrides, and is the most populated town out of the islands. Away is an important port and the bulk of the economy in the area comes from fishing and the production of Harris tweed, although tourism is also a relatively prominent part of the town. Starnoway is accessible through a ferry which runs several times daily, and there is also some access through
Starnaway Airport, which has links to Edinburgh and Glasgow. In October twenty twenty two, fifty six year old Susan Ford traveled to Starnaway and checked in to the Callared Inn. This hotel is located relatively central to the town center and also to the port. Susan was originally from the village of Fossa in County Kerry in the Republic of Ireland, and she worked as an occupational therapist. She had set up a not for profit business called Slanow's Stroke Rehab, which
sought to help stroke victims to get back on their feet. In March twenty twenty two, Susan made the decision to relocate her life and she moved to the city of Montpellier in southern France. It reported that Susan regularly kept in contact with her family while she lived there, and they believed that in October twenty twenty two that she was still there. They had not been told by
Susan that she had plans to go anywhere else. Her family reported that they were in contact with her until around mid October, when they then lost contact. This was concerning given that Susan had kept in regular contact with her family normally during this time. It's now known that Susan had traveled to Scotland, and specifically to Stornaway. She had checked herself into the Callard Inn hotel in the town, and it was here that she was spotted On Sunday, October.
The SIXTEENTHTV from the hotel showed Susan leaving at around five ten pm. She was wearing an orange top, a dark colored jacket with a white lining, a white scarf, blue trousers or jeans, walking boots, a cream or gray colored tammy jacket and some black glasses. She was also seen carrying a backpack. It was known that when she left the hotel she got into a taxi. Susan asked for the taxi to take her to the village of Barv. Barv is around fifteen miles north of Starnaway and is a small,
relatively remote village. She asked to be taken to the Barv country House Hotel, which is a four star hotel in the area. The taxi drops Susan in the car park. However, this is where Susan's trail appears to end. It reported that she did not enter the hotel that day and she has not been seen since arriving in the car park. This behavior was unusual for
Susan and the reason why she traveled to Scotland appears to be unknown. The fact that it was also unknown where Susan went after this point was also concerning. Susan's family were immediately worried when no one had heard from her, and is reported in The Irish Independent that that same week they went on to social media to try and search for her. In a social media post, her family asked for the public's help and said maybe you sold her a plane,
train, ferry or bus ticket. Maybe she was in your taxi, Maybe you recognize her from a hospital admission, or maybe you saw her on a beach or served her a coffee. They hoped that someone could account for her whereabouts. Police Scotland were made aware that Susan had traveled to star Away and began to make inquiries. It was at this point that they were informed about her movements at the Collard Inn and then the subsequent taxi journey to barv country
House Hotel. In the couple of weeks following Susan's disappearance, police tried to search for her in the vicinity of where she had last been seen. Police Scotland issued an appeal for information as they were also worried about her welfare.
On the eleventh of November, almost a month since her disappearance, Sergeant Donald MacLeod from Stornaway Police made an appeal to the public, saying we are becoming increasingly concerned as there have been no sightings or contact from Susan since she was dropped off by the taxi in barv I am asking anyone who may have seen her and knows where she is to get in touch. I'm also asking people
to check sheds and outbuildings in case Susan has sought shelter. Police Scotland is seeking the assistance of the public in trying to locate a fifty six year old woman missing since October twenty twenty two. Susan Ford left the Republic of Ireland in March twenty twenty two to travel overseas. She traveled to Scotland in October twenty twenty two, visiting the capitol before she made her way to the Isle of Lewis. Police are becoming increasingly concerned as there have been no sightings or
contact from her since then. Her family is understandably worried and want her home safe. Lamul Holland, Susan's cousin, made an appeal on behalf of the family, saying that they were worried and they were desperate for her to come home. Police called the Coastguard into the search effort for Susan. Given the proximity of her disappearance to the coast. Lifeboat crews were also called in to assist. They scoured the areas in the vicinity of where Susan had last been
seen. It's reported that teams spent two days searching villages, moorlands and the coast around Barv. The Starnaway R and l I also conducted a search of the coastland around Starnaway in the hope that they would find any evidence as to
where Susan went. This search, however, was suspended on Sunday, November thirteenth, and Starnaway Coast Guard Rescue Team issued a statement about their involvement, saying at this point Susan remains missing and our search is suspended pending further investigation and review by Police Scotland. Our thoughts are with her family and friends at
this difficult time. We would like to thank the community of Barv for their assistance and both Barv House Hotel and the Clan Macquarie Community Center for accommodating our control points. Irish politicians also got involved with highlighting Susan's disappearance. Irish mops Sean Kelly and Maria Walsh supported the family's social media appeals and Maria Walsh reached out to people in her French network who may be able to help with information.
Sean Kelly expressed that Susan is a friend of the family as he is also from close to the area of Fossa, and he said he felt for her family. He stated, Susan is a close friend of our family and a neighbor of ours in Fossa. My thoughts are with Susan's family, who are exceptionally decent and gifted people. I sincerely hope we get news of Susan's
whereabouts soon and echo the family's appeal for information. A spokesperson for the Department of Foreign Affairs has said that they are aware of the case and that they are providing consular support. As with all consular cases, the Department does not comment on the details of any specific case. Despite the searches that were conducted for Susan, she was not located, and over a year later, she remains a missing person. Her family are desperate for answers as to what happened,
and they would love to find her. It's reported that they have set up an email address for people to get in contact with them directly. This email address is please find Susan twenty twenty two at gmail dot com. I will link this in the show notes as well as Susan's missing person profile. It's clear that Susan was a beloved family member and friend and she is much
missed. Her loved ones deserve to know where she is. So if you know anything about Susan Ford's disappearance in October twenty twenty two in Starnaway, then please contact Police Scotland on one oh one, quoting the reference number one two six' two. Thank you for us listening to episode six of our twelve Days of Missing Person episodes throughout December, listening in two days to episode seven. If you'd like to support the podcast further, then you can on Patreon
and contribute to the exclusive polls to get extra bonus episodes every month. You can also get access to new episodes early and ad free. You can use the link in the show notes to visit Patreon and see what we offer. You can also support us by reviewing the podcast wherever you listen, including Spotify, and also just share the episodes. You can subscribe on YouTube and follow us on social media as our ways. I'm Caprice and this has been unseen b