The 'perfect storm' that led to a loving dad disappearing days after Christmas
07.01.2024 - 17:53
/ manchestereveningnews.co.uk
Peter Baglin told his family he was going out for a walk just days after Christmas last year. He was going to 'listen to music' and 'clear his head' while strolling along the Bridgewater Canal towpath. He promised them he would return.
But Peter never walked back through the door. What followed was almost ten weeks of, in his widow's own words, 'pure heartbreak and anguish' for all the family.
It was as though Peter, a much-loved husband, dad and grandad, had vanished without a trace. Despite huge multi-agency searches spanning over two months, there were no leads and no sign of where he had gone.
His family's worst fears were then tragically confirmed almost 10 weeks later, on March 4. Officers conducting a re-search of the area found human remains beneath boggy undergrowth in a nearby brook.
Now, the 'perfect storm' of events that claimed his life has been laid out in an inquest, in which his partner of thirty years spoke of the family's ordeal - and their deepest regret.
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"We had everything to live for, it was the time we were most looking forward to, it was our time," Michelle Baglin said at the inquest into Peter's death.
The future looked bright for the Baglins when Peter, 55, said he was going for a walk, early on the evening of December 28.
But then the minutes ticked by and Peter didn't return. It was deeply out of character. But still, there was never any doubt in Michelle's mind that Peter meant to