5 News launches missing persons campaign with Denise Jarvis appeal

Channel 5's 5 News has launched a new weekly missing persons campaign. The programme said it would hear from relatives and friends of missing people whose cases remain unsolved and asked viewers to pass on any information, however small.

In its launch report, Channel 5 focused on Denise Jarvis, who left her home in Bristol in August 2022 and has not been seen since. The channel reported that she had been living with her parents in the Kingswood area of Bristol after separating from her husband and had been struggling with her mental health.

Channel 5 reported that she left the family home on the evening of 3 August 2022 after an argument, carrying five bags, and was last seen heading towards a park. The channel said two of her bags were later found in the park and that the police search had covered land and waterways, including the River Avon.

It reported that Denise had no mobile phone with her and had not used her bank cards, leaving investigators without a digital trail. Channel 5 also reported that investigators had spoken to more than 90 people who knew her and carried out hundreds of actions without tracing her.

Denise's mother and sister told Channel 5 that they still believed she could be out there. The channel reported that they described living in the space between grief and hope and said they still expected her to knock on the door at Christmas or on birthdays. Her family said: "If she's out there, just come back."

Katie Vaughan, chief executive of the charity Missing People, joined the programme in the studio. Channel 5 reported that she said Missing People is the only charity in the UK that exists to support people who are missing and their families. Channel 5 reported that she said 160,000 people go missing every year and that one person is reported missing in the UK every 90 seconds.

5 News asked viewers with information about Denise to contact Avon and Somerset Police on 101. The programme also gave the Missing People helpline number as 116000 and its website as missingpeople.org.uk.