Police boosted in search for missing woman last seen travelling from Fareham that sparked murder probe as 'new information comes to light'

Detectives investigating the case of mum-of-three Joanne Sheen, 44, are currently examining fresh information which ‘came to light’.

Joanne, known as ‘Jo’ and ‘Little Jo’, was last seen travelling from Fareham to Southampton on December 5, 2019, with a friend.

Hampshire Constabulary are treating her disappearance as a murder investigation but are keeping an open mind over what happened to her.

Five people were arrested as part of the probe but no charges were brought against anyone.

No body has been found.

Crime charity Crimestoppers recently offered a £20,000 reward for information on Joanne.

The mum is described as being white, around 5ft 1in tall with a slim build.

When last seen Joanne had long dark brown hair. She has a number of tattoos including a heart-and-dagger on her right upper arm and a band of flowers.

She also has a tattoo of flowers on her right thigh and a star on her right foot. She has a tattoo of blue flowers on her left arm.

There have been other unconfirmed sightings of Joanne before Christmas 2019 in Southampton.

Over the last two years, police have spoken to hundreds of witnesses and conducted several searches across Southampton. The most recent was in July this year near Mayflower Park.

A police spokesman said: ‘New information recently came to light which led us to search under the pier next to Mayflower Park. Officers from our Marine Unit searched the area for several hours.

‘Items including trainers and a handbag were found and will be examined further to establish whether or not they are of relevance to this investigation.’

DI Toby Elcock is leading the investigation. He said: ‘We hope this search shows that we remain dedicated to finding out what happened to Jo and that we will pursue all lines of enquiry available to us.

‘Someone out there must know what happened to her. Please get in touch with us – no matter how insignificant you think the information you have might be, it could be that crucial piece in the puzzle that leads us to Jo.’

SEE ALSO: Body found

Call police on 101 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111, quoting Operation Blackboard or 44200068330.