The man who led the investigation into one of Norfolk's biggest unsolved mysteries, the disappearance of April Fabb, has died still wishing he could have got justice for her family.
April, then 13, vanished into thin air while cycling near her home close to Cromer in April 1969.
Her bike was found in a field, but no trace of the schoolgirl has ever been found despite a major investigation and almost five decades of cold case work.
Reginald Lester, who led the original investigation, has died, aged 92, still wishing he could have found answers for April's family, including her mother Olive, who he had been in touch with up until her death in 2013.
Mr Lester's son, Stuart, 61, from Norwich, said: 'He visited her mum all the time. He would have liked to have solved that to be honest. I think he's gone to his grave thinking about it. I think it would've made his day if he got his hands on whoever did it. He would have loved to have got a result for them, but sadly that window has gone now.'
The April Fabb case was one of a number of high profile investigations Mr Lester, who went onto become head of Norfolk CID, worked on during a career which lasted from 1965 to 1983.
Others included the murder of 18-year-old Susan Long in Aylsham in 1970, the disappearance of 11-year-old Fakenham schoolboy Steven Newing in 1969 and the vanishing of Pamela Exall, 21, from Snettisham in August 1974.
Stuart said despite the sadness that went with the job it was a career his father, who was awarded the Queen's Police Medal, enjoyed. 'He never ever complained. He loved his job. He had a very inquisitive mind.'
Mr Lester, who was born in Walsall, joined Walsall Borough Police in 1948 and took charge of Norwich CID in June 1965 before he was promoted to Detective Superintendent with the Norfolk County force in 1966.
The father of one, grandfather of one and great grandfather of one was described as an 'example to us all' by colleagues when he retired, lived with his wife Elizabeth, 91, at Stoke Holy Cross.
He was a big Norwich City fan and was still asking about the results up until his death, at a care home in Saxlingham, on February 28.
A funeral service will take place at Stoke Holy Cross Church on March 22 at 11am.
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