Russell Blent: Missing Shrewsbury man's family trapped in a 'living nightmare'

Russell Blent's younger sister Lucy said the family had found Christmas very hard and that his disappearance had been "totally out of character".

She also revealed how the family had been hit by tragedy on several occasions over the years.

Russell, 35, from Shrewsbury, was last seen on March 17 last year, and police said the search remains a "top priority".

Lucy said that her brother had been loved by everyone who knew him and that it was totally out of character for him to disappear without a word.

Police have carried out a number of searches but have not received any confirmed sightings.

Over the years, the Blent family have been hit by tragedy a number of times and Russell, called Gudgeon by all who knew him, was particularly affected leading to him suffering from bouts of depression.

His younger sister Laura was killed in a road accident at Harlescott Grange in 1998 when he was just 17 years old.

His girlfriend died in bed next to him from a massive drugs overdose two years ago and just weeks after his disappearance, his cousin Stuart Downes was found dead in woodland close to where Russell was last seen.

Russell, a former pupil at Meole Brace School, has been described as a "loveable rogue" who had been known to police since he was a teenager.

He had a drug problem and liked a drink but was loved by his friends and family and was well known in the local community.

At first when he disappeared, his family thought he had been arrested and remanded in to custody.

But as time went on they realised that something wasn't right and reported him missing. "It was totally out of character," said Lucy, 33.

"The last night he was last seen alive, we were told by a number of people that he had been drinking although the police who saw him late at night near the roundabout at Meole Brace said he was coherent.

"When we didn't hear from him we just thought he had been arrested."

But when days turned in to weeks the whole family got more and more concerned. He was a real home-bird and it made no sense that he would just disappear.

"As a family we are all hoping for him to come home alive and well but as time goes on we know the likelihood of that is getting less and less.

"We want him home either way. He is missed by everyone including his two children.

"We will never give up looking for him and the hope he will be found no matter what, he had his problems as many people do but he was a gentle and loving person who was very popular with everyone, a very likeable lad.

"We would like to thank everyone for their continued support, we would not wish this pain and anguish on anyone, it is a living nightmare. It is just crazy how someone can fall off the face of the earth. It is just mad. Christmas was very hard for the whole family and my mum and dad, Linda and John, have taken his disappearance particularly hard.

"As a family we have been through so much. We need to get him home. It is just torture for us."

Russell has the initials THFC – for Tottenham Hotspur Football Club – tattooed on the knuckles of his left hand.

Anyone with any further information is urged to contact police using the non-emergency number 101. Alternatively, contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555111 or at crimestoppers-uk.org