The family of Leah Croucher have said their “faint glimmer of hope” of her being alive has been “brutally extinguished” after the teenager’s remains were found in the loft space of a house.
In a tribute to their “bright, funny young” daughter, the 19-year-old’s family said they knew the “heartbreaking news” of her death would “come one day” but they are “devastated” to have been proven right.
“The deepest, darkest grief that we, Leah’s family and friends are experiencing over the past weeks shows us that glimmer was actually, foolishly, a shining beacon of hope, which has now been brutally extinguished in the cruellest and harshest of ways,” they said.
“It has been a long way to fall back to reality.”
Ms Croucher’s remains were found last week, more than three years after she went missing on her way to work at a finance company in Milton Keynes on 15 February 2019.
Items belonging to the teenager were also found in the same property in Loxbeare Drive, Furzton, which is just a few minutes away from her home.
Her family described feeling a “pain almost too big to bear” following her disappearance, but added: “There is little that compares to the deep chasm Leah’s death has brought to us”.
“Leah was a bright, funny young woman who was a kind, loyal, helpful and caring soul,” their statement continued.
“Her smile lit up the room, and her laugh cheered all who heard it. Leah had a wonderful sense of humour, who found joy in everything she did.”
The prime suspect in Ms Croucher’s murder investigation has been named by police as convicted sex offender Neil Maxwell, who was found dead on 20 April 2019 after he took his own life.
