By George Palmer-Soady
The family of a miner whose body was found buried in a Nottinghamshire field more than 50 years after he vanished now fear the mystery will never be solved.
An inquest held today (November 18) led to a ruling Alfred Swinscoe had been ‘unlawfully killed’ – but it was unable to shed further light on who was responsible.
After the hearing his grandson said the family now fear they will never know who killed the father of six – or why he was attacked.
The remains of Mr Swinscoe were found on Sutton-in-Ashfield farmland on April 26 2023 – more than 56 years after he disappeared while out at a pub in Pinxton in 1967.
The inquest into his death at Nottingham Coroner’s Court on Monday (November 18), heard Mr Swinscoe had sustained multiple traumatic injuries to multiple areas – including his neck – before being buried.
A post-mortem examination determined he had suffered a “sustained attack with a bladed instrument,” which Assistant Coroner Nathanael Hartley concluded was part of an ‘unlawful killing’.
Nottinghamshire Police re-opened the case as a murder inquiry following the discovery last year.
Officers have previously identified two suspects, however neither has ever been publicly named by police and they were not mentioned during Monday’s hearing at Nottingham Council House.
After the inquest, Alfred’s grandson Russell Lowbridge said many of his family’s questions remain “unanswered,” following the coroner’s verdict.
“The inquiry didn’t tell us the ‘whys’ and who did it,” he said.
“The questions remain unanswered and I don’t think we’re any further today. They are going to go unanswered as many people who were around then are now deceased and gone.
“He died horrifically, so it’s quite upsetting to hear,” he said of the verdict, adding: “I was hoping but not optimistic.”
Mr Lowbridge – who attended with his brother Jason – had told the inquest: “I can’t understand why anybody would want to do it.
“He was such a nice man and didn’t bother anybody, and from what you’ve [the coroner] told us, it was a wicked death.
“Nobody deserves that kind of death, let alone Alfred.”
The inquest was first opened on August 21 after a workman digging a trench in a field off Coxmoore Lane, Sutton-in-Ashfield, discovered the body last April.
The father-of-six went missing after going to the toilet one night at the Miners Arms pub in Pinxton, Derbyshire, 57 years ago. The building still stands, but is now a private house.
He was last spotted at around 10.30pm that evening when he gave his son some change to buy a round and excused himself – but never returned.
While Notts Police were unable to pinpoint an exact time when he was likely buried, Mr Hartley said the most reliable specific sighting of Mr Swinscoe which had a date attached to it was at his workplace on January 20, 1967.
Ruby Burrow, Detective Chief Inspector at Notts Police, giving evidence, said archaeological findings show the body was likely to have been buried in more than one site.
“We understand from experts that where he was found was not the first site he was buried,” she said.
“He was likely to have been buried somewhere else before being moved.” Det Cheif Insp Burrow said, adding this was determined due to a discolouration of soil in the grave.
She added the force’s investigations had been difficult due to the “passage of time.”
“If an investigation like this happened today, we would have had more opportunities,” she added.
“The passage of time has been really difficult – if they [possible witnesses] haven’t have passed away, they’ve not been in the best of health.
“And them not being able to speak to us now has been really difficult.”
Alfred – known to friends and family by the nickname ‘Sparrow’ – was 54 at the time he disappeared and worked at Langton Colliery from the age of 14. He was eventually buried alongside his son Gary at a cemetery in Sutton-in-Ashfield in January 2024.
Four of his six children are still alive and he has several grandchildren. It is believed he was drinking with his two sons on the night of his disappearance.
Mr Swinscoe was only identified following a media appeal for information about the unidentified remains when they were first uncovered last year.
Relatives, partly thorough recognising photos items of clothing found including socks, came forward.
DNA tests were carried out on Russell and Alfred’s son, now in his 70s, and matched against the bones exhumed from the ground. Notts Police revealed the new developments in June and later identified the unnamed suspects.
